THE 


VOYAGE  OF  VERRAZZANO 


A CHAPTER  I NT  THE 


AMERICA. 


BY  HENRY  0.  MURPHY. 


« 


2 / . 


Jt- 


.1 

X?-  t,4Z% 


z . s’ Jl 


£■£  C£ 


/ ■€,  < - £ .-'V  t yr 


y 


'/ // * f * u 


SV  //,, . . s 


Y/££y 


y 


THE 


VOYAGE  OF  VERRAZZANO: 


A CHAPTER  IN  THE 


Early  History  of  Maritime  Discovery 


in 

AMERICA. 


BY  HENRY  C.  MURPHY. 


NEW  YORK 
1875. 


TO  THE 

JWentorg 

or 

BUCKINGHAM  SMITH, 


ST.  AUGUSTINE, 


FLORIDA. 


The  following  pages,  intended  to  show  the  claim  of  dis- 
covery in  America  by  Yerrazzano  to  be  without  any  real 
foundation,  belong  to  a work,  in  hand,  upon  the  earliest 
explorations  of  the  coast  which  have  led  to  the  settle- 
ment of  the  United  States  by  Europeans.  They  are 
now  printed  separately,  with  some  additions  and  neces- 
sary changes,  in  consequence  of  the  recent  production  of 
the  map  of  Hieronimo  de  Yerrazano,  which  professes  to 
represent  this  discovery,  and  is  therefore  supposed  to 
afford  some  proof  of  its  authenticity ; in  which  view  it  has 
been  the  subject  of  a learned  and  elaborate  memoir  by  J. 
Carson  Brevoort  Esq. 

Certain  important  documents  in  relation  to  Yerrazzano, 
procured  from  the  archives  of  Spain  and  Portugal  by  the 
late  Buckingham  Smith,  on  a visit  to  those  countries  a 
year  or  two  before  his  death,  are  appended.  They  were 
intended  to  ^accompany  a second  edition  of  his  Inquiry , a 
purpose  which  has  been  interrupted  by  his  decease.  They 
were  entrusted  by  him  to  the  care  of  his  friend,  G-eorge 
IT.  Moore  Esq.,  of  Yew  York,  who  has  placed  them  at  our 
disposal  on  the  present  occasion. 

The  fragmentary  and  distorted  form  in  which  the  letter 
ascribed  to  Yerrazzano,  appeared  in  the  collection  of 
Bamusio,  and  was  thence  universally  admitted  into  history, 
rendered  it  necessary  that  the  letter  should  be  here  given 
complete,  according  to  its  original  meaning.  It  is,  therefore , 
annexed  in  the  English  translation  of  Dr.  Cogswell,  which 
though  not  entirely  unexceptionable  is,  for  all  purposes, 
sufficiently  accurate.  The  original  Italian  text  can,  how- 
ever, be  consulted  in  the  Collections  of  the  Yew  York 
Historical  Society,  accompanying  his  translation,  and  also 


VI 


VERRAZZANO. 


in  the  Archivio  Storico  Italiano,  in  which  it  is  represented 
by  the  editor  to  be  more  correctly  copied  from  the  manu- 
script, and  amended  in  its  language  where  it  seemed  cor- 
rupt ; but  such  corrections  are  few  and  unimportant.  In 
all  cases  in  which  the  letter  is  now  made  the  subject  of 
critical  examination,  the  passages  referred  to  are  given,  for 
obvious  reasons,  according  to  the  reading  of  the  Floren- 
tine editor. 

We  are  indebted  to  the  American  Geographical  Society 
of  New  York  for  the  use  of  its  photographs  of  the  Ver- 
razano  map,  and  to  Mr.  Brevoort  for  a copy  of  the  cosmogra- 
phy of  Alfonse,  from  which  the  chart  of  Norumbega  has 
been  taken.  And  our  thanks  are  due  to  Dr.  J.  Gilmary 
Shea  of  New  York,  for  valuable  assistance ; and  to  Dr.  E. 
R.  Straznicky  of  the  Astor  Library,  Mons.  C.  Maunoir  of 
the  Societe  de  Geographie  of  Paris,  Dr.  J.  Hammond 
Trumbull  of  Hartford,  Hon.  John  R.  Bartlett  of  Provi- 
dence, and  James  Lenox  Esq.  of  New  York,  for  various 
favors  kindly  rendered  during  the  progress  of  our  re- 
searches. 


Brooklyn,  Sept.  1875. 


CONTENTS. 


I.  The  Discovery  Attributed  to  Verrazzano, 

II.  The  Verrazzano  Letter  not  Genuine,  . 

III.  The  Letter  untrue.  I.  No  Yoyage  or  Discovery  made 
for  the  King  of  France,  as  it  states, 

IY.  II.  Misrepresentations  in  regard  to  the  Geography 
of  the  Coast.  The  Chesapeake.  The  Island  of 
Louise.  Massachusetts  Bay,  .... 

Y.  III.  Cape  Breton  and  the  Southerly  Coast  of  New- 
foundland, here  claimed  to  have  been  discovered, 
were  known  previously.  Perversion  of  the  Text 
of  the  Letter  by  Bamusio,  .... 

VI.  IY.  The  Description  of  the  People  and  Productions 
of  the  Land  not  made  from  the  Personal  Observation 
of  the  W riter  of  the  Letter.  What  distinctively  be- 
longed to  the  Natives  is  unnoticed,  and  what  is 
originally  mentioned  of  them  is  untrue.  Further 
important  Alterations  of  the  Text  by  Bamusio,  . 

VII.  The  Extrinsic  Evidence  in  Support  of  the  Claim.  I. 
Discourse  of  the  French  Sea  Captain  of  Dieppe,  . 

VIII.  II.  The  Yerrazano  Map.  It  is  not  an  Authoritative 
Exposition  of  the  Y errazzano  Discovery.  Its  Origin 
and  Date  in  its  present  Form.  The  Letter  of  Anni- 
bal  Caro.  The  Map  presented  to  Henry  VIII. 
Voyages  of  Verrazzano.  The  Globe  of  Euphrosy- 
nus  Ulpius,  ....... 


Page 

1-9 

10-24 

25-44 

45-56 

57-69 

69-83 

84-90 

91-115 


VIII 


CONTENTS. 


IX.  The  Letter  to  the  King  founded  on  the  Discoveries  of 
Estevan  Gomez.  The  History  of  Gomez  and  his 
Voyage.  The  Publication  of  his  Discoveries  in 
Spain  and  Italy  before  the  Verrazzano  claim.  The 
Voyage  described  in  the  Letter  traced  to  Ribero’s 
Map  of  the  Discoveries  of  Gomez,  . . 116-133 

X.  The  Career  of  Verrazzano.  An  Adventurous  Life  and 


Ignominious  Death.  Conclusion,  . . 134-151 

Appendix,  . 154-186 

Index 187-197 

ILLUSTRATIONS. 

• 

The  Caravel, 9 

Arms  of  the  Dauphin,  afterwards  Henry  II,  44 

Cape  Henry  and  Entrance  into  the  Chesapeake,  . . 56 

Birch-Bark  Canoe, 83 


MAPS. 

Facing  page 


Chart  from  the  Cosmography  of  Jean  Alfonse,  ...  37 

Map  of  Hieronomo  de  Verrazano,  of  the  alleged  Discovery 

and  adjacent  Countries,  only,  ....  91 

Map  from  the  Globe  of  Ulpius,  of  the  same,  . . .114 

Map  of  Diego  Ribero,  showing  the  Exploration  of  Gomez 

and  the  alleged  Track  of  Verrazzano,  . . 129 

Map  of  Verrazano  entire,  at  the  End  of  the  Volume. 


VOYAGE  OF  VERRAZZANO: 


A CHAPTER  IN  THE  EARLY  HISTORY  OF  MARITIME 
DISCOVERY  IN  AMERICA^ 


I. 

. The  Discovery  Attributed  to  Verrazzano. 

The  discovery  of  the  greater  portion  of  the  Atlantic 
coast  of  North  America,  embracing  all  of  the  United 
States  north  of  Cape  Roman  in  South  Carolina,  and  of 
the  northern  British  provinces  as  far  at  least  as  Cape 
Breton,  by  Giovanni  da  Ye rrazzano,  a Florentine,  in 
the  service  of  the  king  of  France,  has  received  until 
quite  recently  the  assent  of  all  the  geographers  and 
historians  who  have  taken  occasion  to  treat  of  the 
subject.  This  acknowledgment,  for  more  than  three 
hundred  years,  which  would  seem  to  preclude  all  ques- 
tion in  regard  to  its  authenticity  at  this  late  day,  has, 
however,  been  due  more  to  the  peculiar  circumstances 
of  its  publication  than  to  any  evidence  of  its  truth. 
The  only  account  of  it  which  exists,  is  contained  in  a 
letter  purporting  to  have  been  written  by  the  disco- 
verer himself,  and  is  not  corroborated  by  the  testimony 
of  any  other  person,  or  sustained  by  any  documentary 
proof.  It  was  not  published  to  the  world  until  it 


2 VERRAZZANO. 

* 

■ appeared  for  the  first  time  in  Italjq  the  birth  place  of 
the  navigator,  more  than  thirty  years  after  the  trans- 
actions to  which  it  relates  are  alleged  to  have  taken 
place ; and  it  has  not,  up  to  the  present  time,  received 
any  confirmation  in  the  history  of  France,  whose  sove- 
reign, it  is  asserted,  sent  forth  the  expedition,  and  to 
whose  crown  the  right  of  the  discovery  accordingly 
attached.  Yet  it  is  not  difficult  to  comprehend  how 
the  story,  appealing  to  the  patriotic  sympathies  of 
Ramusio,  was  inconsiderately  adopted  by  him,  and  in- 
serted in  his  famous  collection  of  voyages,  and  thus 
receiving  his  sanction,  was  not  unwillingly  accepted, 
upon  his  authority,  by  the  French  nation,  whose  glory 
it  advanced,  without  possibly  its  having  any  real 
foundation.  And  as  there  never  was  any  cplonization 
or  attempt  at  possession  of  the  country  in  consequence 
of  the  alleged  discovery,  or  any  assertion  of  title  under 
it,  except  in  a single  instance  of  a comparatively 
modern  date,  and  with  no  important  bearing,  it  is  no 
less  easy  to  understand,  how  thus  adopted  and  pro- 
mulgated by  the  only  countries  interested  in  the  ques- 
tion, the  claim  was  admitted  by  other  nations  without 
challenge  or  dispute,  and  has  thus  become  incorpo- 
rated into  modern  history  without  investigation: 
Although  the  claim  has  never  been  regarded  of  any 

# practical  importance  in  the  settlement  of  the  country,  it 
has  nevertheless  possessed  an  historigal  and  geograph- 
ical interest  in  connection  with  the  origin  and  pro- 
gress of  maritime  discovery  on  this  continent.  Our 
own  writers  assuming  its  validity,  without  investiga- 
tion, have  been  content  to  trace,  if  possible,  the  route  of 
Verrazzano  and  point  out  the  places  he  explored,  seek- 


THE  VOYAGE. 


3 


ing  merely  to  reconcile  the  account  with  the  actual 
condition  and  situation  of  the  country.  Their  ex- 
planations, though  sometimes  plausible,  are  often  con- 
tradictory, and  not  unfrequently  absurd.  Led  into 
an  examination  of  its  merits  with  impressions  in  its 
favor,  we  have  nevertheless  been  compelled  to  adopt 
the  conclusion  of  a late  American  writer,  that  it  is 
utterly  fictitious.1.  The  grounds  upon  which  our  con- 
viction rests  we  propose  now  to  state.  Some  docu- 
ments will  be  introduced,  for  the  first  time  here  brought 
to  light,  which  will  serve  further  to  elucidate  the  ques- 
tion, and  show  the  career  and  ultimate  fate  of  Ver- 
razzano. 

The  letter,  in  which  the  pretension  is  advanced,  pro- 
fesses to  be  addressed  by  Verrazzano  to  the  king  of 
France,  at  that  time  Francis  I,  from  Dieppe,  in  Nor- 
mandy, the  8th  of  July  (0.  S.),  1524,  on  his  return  to 
that  port  from  a voyage,  undertaken  by  order  of  the 
king,  for  the  purpose  of  finding  new  countries  ; and  to 
give  an  account  of  the  discoveries  which  he  had  accord- 
ingly made.  He  first  reminds  his  majesty  that,  after 
starting  with  four  ships,  originally  composing  the  expe- 
dition, he  was  compelled  by  storms,  encountered  on  the 
northern  coasts,  to  put  into  Brittany  in  distress,  with 
the  loss  of  two  of  them ; and  that  after  repairing  there 
the  others,  called  the  Normanda  and  Delfina  ( Dau - 
phine ),  he  made  a*  cruize  with  this  fleet  of  war,  as  they 
are  styled,  along  the  coast  of  Spain.  He  finally  pro- 
ceeded on  the  voyage  of  discovery  with  the  Dauphine 

1 An  Inquiry  into  the  Authenticity  of  Documents  concerning  a Discovery  in 
North  America  claimed  to  have  been  made  by  Verrazzano.  Read  before  the 
New  York  Historical  Society , Tuesday , October  4 th,  1864.  By  Buckingham 
-Smith.  New  York,  1864.  pp.  31,  and  a map. 


4 


VERRAZZANO. 


alone,  setting  sail  from  a desolate  rock  near  the  island 
of  Madeira,  on  the  17th  of  January,  1524,  with  fifty 
men,  and  provisions  for  eight  months,  besides  the 
necessary  munitions  of  war.  This  voyage,  therefore, 
is  to  be  regarded,  according  to  the  representations 
here  made,  to  have  been  begun  with  the  sailing  of 
the  four  ships,  from  Dieppe,  in  the  preceding  year.1 
On  leaving  Madeira  they  pursued  *a  westerly  course 
for  eight  hundred  leagues  and  then,  inclining  a little 
to  the  north,  ran  four  hundred  leagues  more,  when  on 
the  7th  of  March2  they  fell  upon  a “ country  never 
before  seen  by  any  one  either  in  ancient  or  modern 
times.”  It  seemed  very  low  and  stretched  to  the  south, 
in  which  direction  they  sailed  along  it  for  the  purpose 
of  finding  a harbor  wherein  their  ship  might  ride  in 

safety ; but  discovering  none  in  a distance  of  fifty 

• “•  # 

1 Some  writers  have  regarded  this  introductory  as  referring  to  two  voy- 

ages or  cruizes,  one  with  the  four  ships  before  the  disaster,  and  the  other 
with  the  Dauphine  afterwards.  But  it  seems  clear  from  their  being  de- 
scribed as  assailed  by  tempests  in  the  north,  which  compelled  them  to  run 
into  Brittany  for  safety,  that  they  were  not  far  distant  from  Dieppe  when 
the  storms  overtook  them ; and  must  have  been  either  on  their  way  out  or 
on  their  return  to  that  port.  If  they  were  on  their  return  from  a voyage  to 
America,  as  Charlevofe  infers  {Fostes  Chronologiques,  1523-4),  or  simply 
from  a cruize,  as  Mr.  Brevoort  supposes,  they  would,  after  making  their 
repairs,  have  proceeded  "home  to  Dieppe,  instead  of  making  a second 
voyage.  They  must,  therefore,  be  regarded  as  on  their  way  from  Dieppe. 
The  idea  of  a voyage  having  been  performed  before  the  storms,  seems  to 
be  due  to  an  alteration  which  Ramusio  made  in  this  portion  of  the  letter, 
by  introducing  the  word  “ success,”  as  of  the  four  ships.  Charlevoix  ex- 
pressly refers  to  Ramusio  as  his  authority  and*  Mr.  Brevoort  makes  a 
paraphrase  from  the  Carli  and  Ramusio  versions  combined.  (Notes  on  the 
Verrazano  Map  in  Journal  of  the  Am.  Geog.  Society  of  New  York,  vol. 
iv,  pp.  172-3.)  * 

2 There  is  some  ambiguity  in  the  account,  as  to  the  time  when  they  first 
saw  land.  The  letter  reads  as  follows : “ On  the  17th  of  last  January  we 
set  sail  from  a desolate  rock  hear  the  island  of  Madeira,  and  sailing  west- 
ward, in  twenty-five  days  we  ran  eight  hundred  leagues.  On  the  24th  of 
February,  we  encountered  as  violent  a hurricane  as  any  ship  ever  weath- 
ered. Pursuing  our  voyage  toward  the  west,  a little  northwardly,  in 
twenty-four  days  more,  having  run  four  hundred  leagues,  we  reached  anew 


THE  VOYAGE. 


5 


leagues,  they  retraced  their  course,  and  ran  to  the 
north  with  no  better  success.  They  therefore  drew 
in  with  the  land  and  sent  a boat  ashore,  and  had  their 
first  communication  with  the  inhabitants,  who  regarded 
them  with  wonder.  These  people  are  described  as 
going  naked,  except  around  their  loins,  and  as  being 
Rack.  The  land,  rising  somewhat  from  the  shore,  was 
covered  with  thick  forests,  which  sent  forth  the  sweetest 
fragrance  to  a great  distance.  They  supposed  it  ad- 
joined the  Orient,  and  for  that  reason  was  not  devoid 
of  medicinal  and  aromatic  drugs  and  gold ; and  being 
in  latitude  34°  N.,  was  possessed  of  a pure,  salubrious 
and  healthy  climate.  They  sailed  thence  westerly  for 
a short  distance  and  then  northerly,  when  at  the  end 
of  fifty  leagues  they  arrived  before  a land  of  great  forests, 
where  they  landed  and  found  luxuriant  vines  entwin- 
ing the  trees  and  producing  sweet  and  luscious  grapes 
of  which  they  ate , tasting  not  unlike  their  own ; and 
from  whence  they  carried  off  a boy  about  eight  years 
old,  for  the  purpose  of  taking  him  to  France.  Coast- 
ing thence  northeasterly  for  one  hundred  leagues,  sail- 
ing only  in  the  day  time  and  not  making  any  harbor 
in  the  whole  of  that  distance,  they  came  to  a pleasant 
situation  among  steep  hills,  from  whence  a large  river 
ran  into  the  sea.  Leaving,  in  consequence  of  a rising 

country,”  &c.  If  the  twenty-four  days  be  calculated  from  the  24th  of 
* February,  the  landfall  would  have  taken  place  on  the  20th  of  March  ; but 
if  reckoned  from  the  first  twenty -five  days  run,  it  would  have  been  on  the 
7th  of  that  month.  Ramusio  changes  the  distance  first  sailed  from  800'  to 
500  leagues ; the  day  when  they  encountered  the  storm  from  the  24th  to  the 
20th  of  February  ; and  the  twenty-four  days  last  run  to  twenty -five ; mak- 
ing the  landfall  occur  on  the  17th  or  10th  of  March  according  to  the  mode 
of  calculating  the  days  last  run.  As  it  isfstated,  afterwards,  that  they  en- 
countered a gale  while  at  anchor  on  the  coast , early  in  March,  the  7th  of 
that  month  must  be  taken  as  the  time  of  the  landfall. 


6 


VERRAZZANO. 


storm,  this  river,  into  which  they  had  entered  for  a 
short  distance  with  their  boat,  and  where  they  saw  many 
of  the  natives  in  their  canoes , they  sailed  directly  east 
for  eighty  leagues,  when  they  discovered  an  island  of 
triangular  shape,  about  ten  leagues  from  the  main 
land,  equal  \n  size  to  the  island  of  Rhodes.  This  island 
they  named  aftet*  the  mother  of  the  king  of  France. 
Without  landing  upon  it,  they  proceeded  to  a harbor 
fifteen  leagues  beyond,  at  the  entrance  of  a large  bay, 
twelve  leagues  broad,  where  they  came  to  anchor  and 
remained  for  fifteen  days.  They  encountered  here  a 
people  with  whom  they  formed  a great  friendship,  dif- 
ferent in  appearance  from  the  natives  whom  they  first 
saw,  — these  having  a white  complexion.  The  men 
were  tall  and  well  formed,  and  the  women  graceful 
and  possessed  of  pleasing  manners.  There  were  two 
kings  among  them,  who  were  attended  in  state  by 
their  gentlemen,  and  a queen  who  had  her  waiting 
maids.  Thi£  country  was  situated  in  latitude  41°  40' 
N,  in  the  parallel  of  Rome ; and  was  very  fertile  and 
abounded  with  game.  They  left  it  on  the  6th  of  May, 
and  sailed  one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues,  constantly 
in  sight  of  the  land  which  stretched  to  the  east.  In 
this  long  distance  they  made  no  landing,  but  proceeded 
fifty  leagues  further  along  the  land,  which  inclined 
more  to  the  north,  when  they  went  ashore  and  found 
a people  exceedingly  barbarous  and  hostile,  Leaving 
them  and  continuing  their  course  northeasterly  for 
fifty  leagues  further,  they  discovered  within  that  dis- 
tance thirty-two  islands.  And  finally,  after  having 
sailed  between  east  and  north  one  hundred  and  fifty 
leagues  more,  they  reached  the  fiftieth  degree  of  north 
latitude,  where  the  Portuguese  had  commenced  their 


THE  VOYAGE. 


7 


discoveries  towards  the  Arctic  circle;  when  finding 
their  provisions  nearly  exhausted,  they  took  in  wood 
and  water  and  returned  to  France,  having  coasted,  it 
is  stated,  along  an  unknown  country  for  seven  hundred 
leagues . In  conclusion,  it  is  added,  they  had  found  it 
inhabited  by  a people  without  religion,  but  easily  to  be 
persuaded,  and  imitating  with  fervor*the  acts  of  Christ- 
ian worship  performed  by  the  discoverers. 

The  description  of  the  voyage  is  followed  by  what 
the  wTriter  calls  a cosmography,  in  which  is  shown  the 
distance  they  had  sailed  from  the  time  they  left  the 
desert  rocks  at  Madeira,  and  the  probable  size  of 
the  new  world  as  compared  with  the  old,  with  the 
relative  area  of  land  and  water  on  the  whole  globe. 
There  is  nothing  striking  or  important  in  this  supple- 
ment, except  that  it  emphasizes  and  enforces  the  state- 
ments of  the  former  part  of  the  letter  in  regard  to  the 
landfall,  fixes  the  exact  point  of  their  departure  from 
the  coast  for  home  again  at  50°  N.  latitude,  and  gives 
seven  hundred  leagues  as  the  extent  of  the  discovery. 
The  length  of  a longitudinal  degree  along  the  parallel 
of  thirty-four,  in  which  it  is  reiterated  they  first  made 
land,  and  between  which  and  the  parallel  of  thirty- 
two  they  had  sailed  from  the  Desertas,  is  calculated 
and  found  to  be  fifty-two  miles,  and  the  whole  number 
of  degrees  which  they  had  traversed  across  the  ocean 
between  those  parallels,  being  twelve  hundred  leagues, 
or  forty-eight  hundred  miles,  is  by  simple  division 
made  ninety-two.  The  object  of  this  calculation  is 
not  apparent,  and  strikes  the  reader  as  if  it  were  a 
feeble  imitation  of  the  manner  in  which  Amerigo 
Yespucci  illustrates  his  letters.  A statement  is  made, 


8 


VERRAZZANO. 


that  they  took  the  sun  s altitude  from  day  to  day,  and 
noted  the  observations,  together  with  the  rise  and  fall 
of  the  tide,  in  a little  book,  which  was  “ communicated 
to  his  majesty,  in  the  hope  of  promoting  science.” 
It  is  also  mentioned  that  they  had  no  lunar  eclipses, 
by  means  of  which  they  could  have  ascertained  the 
longitude  during^he  voyage.  This  fact  is  shown  by 
the  tables  of  Regiomontanus,  which  had  been  pub- 
lished long  before  the  alleged  voyage,  and  were  open 
to  the  world.  The  statement  of  it  here,  therefore, 
does  not,  as  has  been  supposed,  furnish  any  evidence 
in  support  of  the  narrative,  by  reason  of  its  originality. 

Such  is  the  account,  in  brief,  whicji  the  letter  gives 
of  the  origin,  nature  and  extent  of  the  alleged  disco- 
very ; and  as  it  assumes  to  be  the  production  of  the 
navigator  himself,  and  is  the  only  source  of  informa- 
tion on  the  subject,  it  suggests  all  the  questions  which 
arise  in  this  inquiry.  These  relate  both  to  the  genuine- 
ness of  the  letter,  and  the  truth  of  its  statements  ; and 
accordingly  bring  under  consideration  the  circum- 
stances under  which  that  instrument  was  made  known 
and  has  received  credit ; the  alleged  promotion  of  tjie 
voyage  by  the  king  of  France  ; and  the  results  claimed 
to  have  been  accomplished  thereby.  It  will  be  made 
to  appear  upon  this  examination,  that  the  letter,  ac- 
cording to  the  evidence  upon  which  its  existence  is 
predicated,  could  not  have  been  written  by  Verraz- 
zano ; that  the  instrumentality  of  the  king  of  France, 
in  any  such  expedition  of  discovery  as  therein  de- 
scribed, is  unsupported  by  the  history  of  that  country, 
and  is  inconsistent  with  the  acknowledged  acts  of 
Francis  and  his  successors,  and  therefore  incredible  ; 


THE  VOYAGE. 


9 


and  that  its  description  of  the  coast  and  some  of 
the  physical  characteristics  of  the  people  and  of  the 
country  are  essentially  false,  and  prove  that  the  writer 
could  not  have  made  them  from  his  own  personal 
knowledge  and  experience,  as  pretended.  And,  in 
conclusion,  it  will  be  shown  that  its  apparent  know- 
ledge of  the  direction  and  extent  of  the  coast  was 
* derived  from  the  exploration  of  Estevan  Gomez,  a Por- 
tuguese pilot  in  the  service  of  the  king  of  Spain,  and 
that  Verrazzano,  at  the  time  of  his  pretended  discovery, 
was  actually  engaged  in  a corsairial  expedition,  sailing 
under  the  French  flag,  in  a different  part  of  the  ocean. 


The  Caravel. 


2 


10 


VERRAZZANO. 


II. 

The  Verrazzano  Letter  not  Genuine. 

No  proof  that  the  letter  ascribed  to  Verrazzano,  was  ^ 
written  by  him,  has  ever  been  produced.  The  letter 
itgelf  has  never  been  exhibited,  or  referred  to  in  any 
authentic  document,  or  mentioned  by  any  contemporary 
or  later  historian  as  being  in  existence,  and  although 
it  falls  within  the  era  of  modern  history,  not  a single 
fact  which  it  professes  to  describe  relating  to  the  fitting 
out  of  the  expedition,  the  voyage,  or  the  discovery, 
is  corroborated  by  other  testimony,  whereby  its  genu- 
ineness might  even  be  inferred.  The  only  evidence  in 
regard  to  it,  relates  to  two  copies,  as  they  purport  to 
be,  both  in  the  Italian  language,  one  of  them  coming 
to  us  printed*and  the  other  in  manuscript,  but  neither 
of  them  traceable  to  the  alleged  original.  They  are 
both  of  them  of  uncertain  date.  The  printed  copy  ap- 
pears in  the  work  of  Ramusio,  first  published  in  1556, 
when  Verrazzano  and  Francis  I,  the  parties  to  it,  were 
both  dead,  and  a generation  of  men  had  almost  passed 
away  since  the  events  whith  it  announced  had,  ac- 
cording to  its  authority,  taken  place,  and  probably  no 
one  connected  with  the  government  of  France  at  that 
time  could  have  survived  to  gainsay  the  story,  were 
it  untrue.1  Ramusio  does  not*  state  when  or  how  he 

1 Verrazzano  died  in  1527 ; Louise,  the  mother  of  Francis  I in  Septem- 
ber, 1532;  and  Francis  himself  in  March,  1547. 


THE  LETTER  NOT  GENUINE.  11 

obtained  what  he  published.  In  the  preface  to  the 
volume  in  which  it  is  printed,  dated  three  years  before, 
he  merely  speaks  of  the  narrative  incidentally,  but  in 
a discourse  preceding  it,  he  obscurely  alludes  to  the 
place  where  he  found  it,  remarking  that  it  was  the 
only  letter  of  Yerrazzano  that  he  had  “been  able  to 
have,  because  the  others  had  got  astray  in  the  troubles 
of  the  unfortunate  city  of  Florence.”  The  origin  of  the 
manuscript  version  is  equally  involved  in  mystery.  It 
forms  part  of  a codex  which  contains  also  * a copy  of 
a letter  purporting  to  have  been  written  by  Fernando 
Carli,  from  Lyons  to  his  father  in  Florence,  on  the  4th 
of  August,  1524,  giving  an  account  of  the  arrival  of 
Yerrazzano  at  Dieppe,  and  inclosing  a copy  of  his  let- 
ter to  the  King.  The  epistles  of  Carli  and  Yerrazzano 
are  thus  connected  together  in  the  manuscript  in  fact, 
and  by  reference  in  that  of  Carli,  making  the  copy  of 
the  Yerrazzano  letter  a part  of  Carli’s,  and  so  to  relate 
to  the  same  date.  But  as  the  Carli  letter  in  the  manu- 
script is  itself  only  a copy,  there  is  nothing  to  show 
when  that  was  really  written ; nor  is  it  stated  when 
the  manuscript  itself  was  made.  All  that  is  positively 
known  in  regard  to  the  latter  is,  that  it  was  mentioned 
in  1768,  as  being  then  in  existence  in  the  Strozzi  library 
in  Florence.  When  it  came  into  that  collection  does 
not  appear,  but  as  that  library  was  not  founded  until 
1627,  its  history  cannot  be  traced  before  that  year.1 
Its  chirography,  however,  in  the  opinion  of  some  com- 
petent persons  who  have  examined  it,  indicates  that 
it  was  written  in  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century. 


1 Iter  Italicum  von  D.  Friedrich  Blume.  Band  n,  81.  Halle,  1827. 


12 


verrazzaSo. 


There  is,  therefore,  nothing  in  the*  history  or  character 
of  the  publication  in  Ramusio  or  the  manuscript,  to 
show  that  the  letter  emanated  from  Verrazzano. 
Neither  of  them  is  traceable  to  him  ; neither  of  them 
was  printed  at  a time  when  its  publication,  without 
contradiction,  might  be  regarded  as  an  admission  or 
acknowledgment  by  the  world  of  a genuine  original ; 
and  neither  of  them  is  found  to  have  existed  early 
enough  to  • authorize  an  inference  in  favor  of  such  an 
original  by  reason  of  their  giving  the  earliest  account 
of  the  coasts  and  country  claimed  to  have  been  dis- 
covered. On  the  contrary,  these  two  documents  of 
themselves,  when  their  nature  and  origin  are  rightly 
understood,  serve  to  prove  that  the  Yerrazzano  letter 
is  not  a genuine  production.  For  this  purpose  it  will 
be  necessary  to  state  more  fully  their  history  and 
character. 

The  existence  of  the  copy  which,  in  consequence  of 
its  connection  in  the  same  manuscript  with  that  of  the 
Carli  letter,  may  be  designated  as  the  Carli  version,  is 
first  mentioned  in  an  eulogy  or  life  of  Yerrazzano  in 
the  series  of  portraits  of  illustrious  Tuscans,  printed 
in  Florence  in  1767-8,  as  existing  in  the  Strozzi 
library.1  The  author  calls  attention  to  the  fact,  that 
it  contains  a part  of  the  letter  which  is  omitted  by 
Ramusio.  In  another  eulogy  of  the  navigator,  by  a 
different  hand,  G.  P.  (Pelli),  put  forth  by  the  same 
printer  in  the  following  year,  the  writer,  referring  to 
the  publication  of  the  letter  of  Ramusio,  states  that  an 
addition  to  it,  describing  the  distances  to  the  places 

1 Serie  di  Ritratti  d1  Uomini  Illustri  Toscani  con  gli  elogj  istorici  dei  mede- 
simi.  Vol.  secondo.  Firenze,  1768. 


THE  LETTER  NOT  GENUINE. 


13 


where  Yerrazzano  had  been,  was  inserted  in  writing 
in  a copy  of  the  work  of  Ramusio,  in  the  possession 
at  that  time  of  the  Yerrazzano  family  in  Florence. 
These  references  were  intended  to  show  the  existence 
of  the  cosmography,  which  Tiraboschi  afterwards 
mentions,  giving,  however,  the  first  named  eulogy  as 
his  authority.  No  portion  of  the  Carli  copy  appeared 
in  print  until  1841,  when  through  the  instrumentality 
of  Mr.  Greene,  the  American  consul  at  Rome,  it  was 
printed  in  the  collections  of  the  New  York  Historical 
Society,  accompanied  by  a translation  into  English  by 
the  late  Dr.  Cogswell.  It  was  subsequently  printed  in 
the  Archivio  Storico  Italiano  at  Florence,  in  1853, 
with  some  immaterial  corrections,  and  a preliminary 
discourse  on  Yerrazzano,  by  M.  Arcangeli.  • From  an 
inspection  of  the  codex  in  the  library,  where  it  then 
existed  in  Florence,  M*  Arcangeli  * supposes  the  manu- 
script was  written  in  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury. This  identical  copy  was,  therefore,  probably  in 
existence  when  Ramusio  published  his  work.  Upon 
comparing  the  letter  as  given  by  Ramusio  with  the 
manuscript,  the  former,  besides  wanting  the  cosmo- 
graphy, is  found  to  differ  from  the  latter  almost  entirely 
in  language,  and  very  materially  in  substance,  though 
agreeing  with  it  in  its  elementary  character  and  pur- 
pose. The  two,  therefore,  cannot  be  copies  of  the 
same  original.  Either  they  are  different  versions  from 
some  other  language,  or  one  of  them  must  be  a recom- 
position of  the  other  in  the  language  in  which  they 
now  are  found.  In  regard  to  their  being  both  trans- 
lated from  the  French,  the  only  other  language  in 
which  the  letter  can  be  supposed  to  have  been  written 


14 


VERRAZZANO. 


besides  the  native  tongue  of  Verrazzano,  although  it 
is  indeed  most  reasonable  to  suppose  that  such  a letter, 
addressed  to  the  king  of  France,  on  the  results  of  an 
expedition  of  the  crown,  by  an  officer  in  his  service, 
would  have  been  written  in  that  language,  it  is,  never- 
theless, highly  improbable  that  any  letter  could,  in 
this  instance,  have  been  so  addressed  to  the  King, 
and  two  different  translations  made  from  it  into 
Italian,  one  by  Carli  in  Lyons  in  1524,  and  the  other 
by  Ramusio  in  Venice  twenty-nine  years  afterwards, 
and  yet  no  copy  of  it  in  French,  or  any  memorial  of 
its  existence  in  that  language  be  known.  This  ex- 
planation must  therefore  be  abandoned.  If  on  th*e 
other  hand,  one  of  these  copies  was  so  rendered  from 
the  French,  or  from  an  original  in  either  form  in 
which  it  appears  in  Italian,  whether  by  Verrazzano 
or  not,  the  other  must  have  been  rewritten  from  it. 
It  is  evident,  however,  that  the  Carli  version  could 
not  have  been  derived  from  that  contained  in  Ramusio, 
because  it  contains  an  entire  part  consisting  of  several 
pages,  embracing  the  cosmographical  explanations  of 
the  voyage,  not  found  in  the  latter.  As  we  are  restricted 
to  these  two  copies  as  the  sole  authority  for  the  letter, 
and  are,  therefore,  governed  in  any  conclusion  on  this 
subject  by  what  they  teach,  it  must  be  determined 
that  the  letter  in  Ramusio  is  a version  of  that  contained 
in  the  Carli  manuscript.  This  suggestion  is  not  new. 
It  was  made  by  Mr.  Greene  in  his  monograph  on 
Verrazzano,  without  his  following  it  to  the  conclusion  to 
which  it  inevitably  leads.  If  the  version  in  Ramusio 
be  a recomposition  of  the  Carli  copy,  an  important  step 
is  gained  towards  determining  the  origin  of  the  Verraz- 


THE  LETTER  NOT  GENUINE. 


15 


zano  letter,  as  in  that  case  the  inquiry  is  brought  down 
to  the  consideration  of  the  authenticity  of  the  Carli 
letter,  of  which  it  forms  a part.  But  before  proceeding 
to  that  question,  the  reasons  assigned  by  Mr.  Greene, 
and  some  incidental  facts  stated  by  him  in  connection 
with  them,  should  be  given.  * He  says  : 

“ The  Strozzi  Library  is  no  longer  in  existence ) but  the  manu- 
scripts of  that  collection  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Tuscan 
government,  and  were  divided  between  the  Magliabechian  and 
Laurentian  libraries  of  Florence.  The  historical  documents  were 
deposited  in  the  former.  Among  them  was  the  cosmographical  nar- 
ration of  Yerrazzano  mentioned  by  Tiraboschi,  and  which  Mr. 
Bancroft  expresses  a desire  to  see  copied  for  the  Historical  Society 
of  New  York.  It  is  contained  in  a volume  of  Miscellanies,  marked 
“ Class  XIII.  Cod.  89.  Verraz  and  forms  the  concluding  portion 
of  the  letter  to  Francis  the  First,  which  is  copied  at  length  in  the 
same  volume.  It  is  written  in  the  common  running  hand  of  the 
sixteenth  century  ( carrattere  corsivo ),  tolerably  distinct,  but  badly 
pointed.  The  whole  volume,  which  is  composed  of  miscellaneous 
pieces,  chiefly  relating  to  contemporary  history,  is  evidently  the  work 
of  the  same  hand. 

“ Upon  collating  this  manuscript  with  that  part  of  the  letter  which 
was  published  by  Hamusio,  we  were  struck  with  the  differences  in 
language  which  run  through  every  paragraph  of  the  two  texts.  In 
substance  there  is  no  important  difference,1  except  in  one  instance, 
where,  by  an  evident  blunder  of  the  transcriber,  bianchissimo  is 
put  for  branzino.  There  is  something  so  peculiar  in  the  style  of  this 
letter,  as  it  reads  in  the  manuscript  of  the  Magliabechian,  that  it  is 
impossible  to  account  for  its  variations  from  Bamusio,  except  by 
supposing  that  this  editor  worked  the  whole  piece  over  anew,  cor- 
recting the  errors  of  language  upon  his  own  authority.2  These 

1 In  tliis  statement  Mr.  Greene  was  mistaken,  as  will  be  manifested  in  a 
comparison  of  the  two  texts  hereafter  given,  in  which  the  difference  of 
language  will  also  appear. 

2 Mr.  Greene  adds  in  a note  to  this  passage : “ He  did  so  also  with  the  trans- 
lation of  Marco  Polo.  See  Apostolo  Zeno,  Annot.  alia  Bib.  Ital.  del  Fon- 
tanini,  tom.  II,  p.  300;-  ed.  di  Parma.  1804.”  There  is  another  instance 
mentioned  by  Amoretti,  in  the  preface  to  his  translation  of  Pigafetta’s  jour- 
nal of  Magellan’s  voyage,  and  that  was  with  Fabre’s  translation  of  the 
copy  of  the  journal  given  by  Pigafetta  to  the  mother  of  Francis  I.  Pre- 
mier voyage  autour  du  monde.  xxxii.  (Jansen,  Paris  l’an  ix.) 


16 


VERRAZZANO. 


errors  indeed  are  numerous,  and  the  whole  exhibits  a strange  mix- 
ture of  Latinisms 1 and  absolute  barbarisms  with  pure  Tuscan  words 
and  phrases.  The  general  cast  of  it,  however,  is  simple  and  not 
unpleasing.  The  obscurity  of  many  of  the  sentences  is,  in  a great 
measure,  owing  to  false  pointing. 

“ The  cosmographical  description  forms  the  last  three  pages  of 
the  letter.  It  was  doubtless  intentionally  omitted  by  Ramusio,  though 
it  would  be  difficult  to  say  why.  Some  of  the  readings  are  appa- 
rently corrupt ; nor,  ignorant  as  we  are  of  nautical  science,  was  it 
in  our*  power  to  correct  them.  There  are  also  some  slight  mistakes, 
which  must  be  attributed  to  the  transcriber. 

“ A letter  which  follows  that  of  Verrazzano,  gives,  as  it  seems  to 
us,  a sufficient  explanation  of  the  origin  of  this  manuscript.  It 
was  written  by  a young  Florentine,  named  Fernando  Carli,  and  is 
addressed  from  Lyons  to  his  father  in  Florence.  It  mentions  the 
arrival  of  Verrazzano  at  Dieppe,  and  contains  several  circumstances 
about  him,  which  throw  a new  though  still  a feeble  light  upon  parts 
of  his  history,  hitherto  wholly  unknown.  It  is  by  the  discovery 
of  this  letter,  that  we  have  been  enabled  to  form  a sketch  of  him, 
somewhat  more  complete  than  any  which  has  ever  yet  been  given. 

“ The  history  of  both  manuscripts  is  probably  as  follows  : Carli 
wrote  toxins  father,  thinking,  as  he  himself  tells  it,  that  the  news  of 
Verrazzano's  return  would  give  great  satisfaction  to  many  of  their 
friends  in  Florence.  He  added  at  the  same  time,  and  this  also  we 
learn  from  his  own  words,  a copy  of  Verrazzano’s  letter  to  the  king. 
Both  his  letter  and  his  copy  of  Verrazzano’s  were  intended  to  be 
shown  to  his  Florentine  acquaintances.  Copies,  as  is  usual  in  such 
cases,  were  taken  of  them ; and  to  us  it  seems  evident  that  from  some 
one  of  these  the  copy  in  the  Magliabechian  manuscript  was  derived. 
The  appearance  of  this  last,  which  was  prepared  for  some  individual 
fond  of  collecting  miscellaneous  documents,  if  not  by  him,  is  a suffi- 
cient corroboration  of  our  statement.”  2 

Adopting  the  Carli  copy  as  the  primitive  form  of 
the  Verrazzano  letter,  and  the  Carli  letter  as  the 
original  means  by  which  it  has  been  communicated  to 

1 An  instance  of  these  Latinisms  is  the  signature  “ Janus  Verrazzanus,” 
affixed  to  the  letter. 

2 Historical  Studies:  by  George  Washington  Greene,  New  York,  1850; 
p.  323.  Life  and  Voyages  of  Verrazzano  (by  the  same),  in  the  North  Ameri- 
can Review  for  October,  1837.  (Vol.  45,  p.  306). 


THE  LETTER  NOT  GENUINE. 


IT 


the  world,  the  inquiry  is  resolved  into  the  authenticity 
of  the  Carli  letter.  There  are  sufficient  reasons  to' 
denounce  this  letter  as  a pure  invention  ; and  in  order 
to  present  those  reasons  more  clearly,  we  here  give  a 
translation  of  it  in  full : 

• Letter  of  Fernando.  Carli  to  his  Father. 1 

In  the  name  of  God. 

„ 4 August,  1524. 

Honorable  Father : • 

Considering  that  when  I was  in  the  armada  in  Barbary  at  Garbich 
the  news  were  advised  you  daily  from  the  illustrious  Sig.  Don  Hugo 
de  Moncada,  Captain  General  of  the  Caesarean  Majesty  in  those 
barbarous  parts,  [of  what]  happened  in  contending  with  the  Moors 
of  that  island ; by  which  it  appears  you  caused  pleasure  to  many  of 
our  patrons  and  friends  and  congratulated  yourselves  on  the  victory 
achieved  : so  there  being  here  news  recently  of  the  arrival  of  Captain 
Giovanni  da  Yerrazzano,  our  Florentine,  at  the  port  of  Dieppe,  in 
Normandy,  with  his  ship,  the  Dauphiny,  with  which  he  sailed  from  the 
Canary  islands  the  end  of  last  January,  to  go  in  search  of  new  lands 
for  this  most  serene  crown  of  France,  in  which  he  displayed  very 
noble  and  great  courage  in  undertaking  such  an  unknown  voyage 
with  only  one  ship,  which  was  a caravel  of  hardly  — tons,  with  only 
fifty  men,  with  the  intention,  if  possible,  of  discovering  Cathay,  taking 
a course  through  other  climates  than  those  the  Portuguese  use  in 
reaching  it  by  the  way  of  Calicut,  but  going  towards  the  northwest 
and  north,  entirely  believing  that,  although  Ptolemy,  Aristotle  and 
ojher  cosmographers  affirm  that  no  land  is  to  be  found  towards  such 
climates,  he  would  find  it  there  nevertheless.  And  so  God  has 
vouchsafed  him  as  he  distinctly  describes  in  a letter  of  his  to  this 
S.  M. ; of  which , in  this , there  is  a copy.  And  for  waiit  of  provi- 
sions, after  many  months  spent  in  navigating,  he  asserts  he  wal* 
forced  to  return  from  that  hemisphere  into  this,  and  having  been 


1 The  letter  of  Carli  was  first  published  in  1844,  with  the  discourse  of 
Mr.  Greene  on  Verrazzano,  in  the  Saggiatore  (i,  257),  a Roman  journal 
of  history,  the  fine  arts  and  philology.  (M.  Arcangeli,  Discorso  sopra 
Giovanni  da  Verrazzano,  p.  35,  in  Archivio'  Storico  ltaliano.  Appenclice 
tom.  ix.)  It  will  be  found  in  our  appendix,  according  to  the  reprint  in  the 
latter  work. 


18 


VERRAZZANO. 


seven  months  on  the  voyage,  to  show  a very  great  and  rapid  passage, 
and  to  have  achieved  a wonderful  and  most  extraordinary  feat 
according  to  those  who  understand  the  seamanship  of  the  world.  Of 
which  at  the  commencement  of  his  said  voyage  there  was  an  unfa- 
vorable opinion  formed,  and  many  thought  there  would  be  no  more 
news  either  of  him  or  of  his  vessel,  but  that  he  might  be  lost  on 
that  side  of  Norway,  in  consequence  of  the  great  ice  which  is  in 
that  northern  ocean ; but  the  Great  God,  as  the  Moor  said,  in  order 
to  give  us  every  day  proofs  of  his  infinite  power  and  show  us  how 
admirable  is  this  worldly  machine,  has  disclosed  to  him  a breadth  of 
land,  as  you  will  perceive,  of  such  extent  that  according  to  good  rea- 
sons, and  the  degrees  of  latitude  ^nd  longitude,  he  alleges  and  shows 
it  greater  than  Europe,  Africa  and  a part  of  Asia ; ergo  mundus 
novus : and  this  exclusive  of  what  the  Spaniards  have  discovered  in 
several  years  in  the  west ; as  it  is  hardly  a year  since  Fernando 
Magellan  returned,  who  discovered  a great  country  with  one  ship  out 
of  the  five  sent  on  the  discovery.  From  whence  he  brought  spices 
much  more  excellent  than  the  usual ; and  of  his  other  ships  no  news 
has  transpired  for  five  years.  They  are  supposed  to  be  lost.  What 
this  our  captain  has  brought  he  does  not  state  in  this  letter,  except 
a very  young  man  taken  from  those  countries;  but  it  is  supposed  he 
has  brought  a sample  of  gold  which  they  do  not  value  in  those  parts, 
and  of  drugs  and  other  aromatic  liquors  for  the  purpose  of  confer- 
ring here  with  several  merchants  after  he  shall  have  been  in  the 
presence  of  the  Most  Serene  Majesty.  And  at  this  hour  he  ought 
to  be  there,  and  from  choice  to  come  here  shortly,  as  he  is  much  de- 
sirbd  in  order  to  converse  with  him  ; the  more  so  that  he  will  find 
here  the  Majesty,  the  King,  our  Lord,  who  is  expected  here  in  three 
or  four  days.  And  we  hope  that  S.  M.  will  entrust  him  again  with 
half  a dozen  good  vessels  and  that  he  will  return  to  the  voyage. 
And  if  our  Francisco  Carli  be  returned  from  Cairo,  advise  him  to 
go,  at  a venture,  on  the  said  voyage  with  him ; and  I believe  they 
were  acquainted  at  Cairo  where  he  has  been  several  years  ; and  not 
tmly  in  Egypt  and  Syria,  but  almost  through  all  the  known  world, 
and  thence  by  reason  of  his  merit  is  esteemed  another  Amerigo 
Vespucci,  another  Fernando  Magellan  and  even  more ; and  we  hope 
that  being  provided  with  other  good  ships  and  vessels,  well  built  and 
properly  victualled,  he  may  discover  some  profitable  traffic  and  mat- 
ter ; and  will,  our  Lord  God  granting  him  life,  do  honor  to  our 
country,  in  acquiring  immortal  fame  and  memory.  And  Alderotto 
Brunelleschi  who  started  with  him  and  by  chance  turning  back  was 
not  willing  to  accompany  him  further,  will,  when  he  hears  of  this, 


THE  LETTER  NOT  GENUINE. 


19 


be  discontented.  Nothing  else  now  occurs  to  me,  as-  I have  advised 
you  by  others  of  what  is  necessary.  I commend  myself  constantly 
to  you,  praying  you  to  impart  this  to  our  friends,  not  forgetting 
Pierfrancesco  Dagaghiano  who  in  consequence  of  being  an  experi- 
enced person  will  take  much  pleasure  in  it,  and  commend  me  to  him. 
Likewise  to  Hustichi,  who  will  not  be  displeased,  if  he  delight,  as 
usual,  in  learning  matters  of  cosmography.  God  guard  you  from  all 
evil.  Your  son. 

Fernando  Carli,  in  Lyons. 

This  letter  bears  date  only  twenty-seven  days  after 
that  of  the  Yerrazzano  letter,  which  is  declared  to 
be  inclosed.  To  discover  its  fraudulent  nature  and  the 
imposition  it  seeks  to  practise,  it  is  only  necessary  to 
bear  this  fact  in  mind,  with  its  pretended  origin,  in 
connection  with  the  warlike  condition  of  France  and 
the  personal  movements  of  the  king,  immediately 
preceding  and  during  the  interval  between  the  dates 
of  the  two  letters.  It  purports  to  have  been  written 
by  Fernando  Carli  to  his  father  in  Florence.  Carli 
is  not  an  uncommon  Italian  name  and  probably  ex- 
isted in  Florence  at  that  time,  but  who  this  Fernando 
was,  has  never  transpired.  He  gives  in  this  letter  all 
.there  is  of  his  biography,  which  is  short.  He  had 
formerly  been  in  the  service  of  the  emperor,  Charles  V, 
under  Moncada,  in  the  fleet  sent  against  the  Moors 
in  Barbary,  and  was  then  in  Lyons,  where,  it  might 
be  inferred,  from  a reference  to  its  merchants,  that  he 
was  engaged  in  some  mercantile  pursuit;  but  the 
reason  of  his  presence  there  is  really  unaccounted  for. 
It  is  not  pretended  that  he  held  any  official  position 
under  the  king  of  France.  The  name  of  his  father, 
by  means  of  which  his  lineage  might  be  traced,  is 
not  mentioned,  but  Francisco  Carli  is  named  as  of  the 
same  family,  but  without  designating  his  relationship. 


VERRAZZANO. 


20  * 

Whether  a myth  or  a reality,  Fernando  seems  to  have 
been  an  obscure  person,  at  the  best;  not  known  to 
the  political  or  literary  history  of  the  period,  and  not 
professing  to  occupy  any  position,  by  which  he  might 
be  supposed  to  have  any  facility  or  advantage  for 
obtaining  official  information  or  the  news  of  the  day, 
over  the  other  inhabitants  of  Lyons  and  of  France. 

He  is  made  to  say  that  he  writes  this  letter  for  the 

particular  purpose  of  communicating  to  his  father 

and  their  friends  in  Florence,  the  news,  which  had 

reached  Lyons,  of  the  arrival  of  Verrazzano  from  his 

wonderful  and  successful  voyage  of  discovery,  and  that 

he  had  advised  his  parent  of  all  other  matters  touching 

his  own  interests,  by  another  conveyance.  It  might 
• 

be  supposed  and  indeed  reasonably  expected  in  a letter 
thus  expressly  devoted  to  Verrazzano,  that  some  cir- 
cumstance, personal  or  otherwise,  connected  with  the 
navigator  or  the  voyage,  or  some  incident  of  his  dis- 
covery, besides  what  was  contained  in  the  enclosed  let- 
ter, such  as  must  have  reached  Lyons,  with  the  news 
of  the  return  of  the  expedition,  would  have  been  men- 
tioned, especially,  as  it  would  all  have  been  interesting 
to  Florentines.  But  nothing  of  the  kind  is  related. 
Nothing  appears  in  the  letter  in  regard  to  the  expedi- 
tion that  is  not  found  in  the  Verrazzano  letter.1 
What  is  stated  in  reference  to  the  previous  life  of 
Verrazzano,  must  have  been  as  well  known  to  Carli’s 
father  as  to  himself,  if  it  were  true,  and  is  therefore 

2Mr.  Greene,  in  his  life  of  Verrazzano,  remarks  that  it  appears  from 
Carli’s  letter,  that  the  Indian  boy  whom  Verrazzano  is  stated  to  have  car- 
ried away,  arrived  safely  in  France ; but  that  is  not  so.  What  is  said  in 
that  letter  is,  that  Verrazzano  does  not  mention  in  his  letter  what  he  had 
brought  home,  except  this  boy. 


THE  LETTER  NOT  GENUINE. 


21 


unnecessarily  introduced,  and  the  same  may  he  said* 
of  the  facts  stated  in  regard  to  Brunelleschi’s  starting 
on  the  voyage  with  Yerrazzano  and  afterwards  turning 
back.  The  particular  description  of  Dagaghiano  and 
Rustichi,  both  of  Florence,  the  one  as  a man  of  expe- 
rience and  the  other  as  a sudent  of  cosmography,  was 
equally  superfluous  in  speaking  of  them  to  his  father. 
These**  portions  of  the  letter  look  like  flimsy  artifices 
to  give  the  main  story  tbs  appearance  of  truth. . They 
may  or  may  not  have  been  true,  and  it  is  not  incon- 
sistent with  an  intention  to  deceive  in  regard  to  the 
voyage  that  they  should  have  been  either  the  one  or 
the  other.  A single  allusion,  however,  is  made-  to  the 
critical  condition  of  affairs  in  France  and  the  stirring 
scene*  which  were  being  enacted  on  either  side  of  the* 
city  of  Lyons  at  the  moment  the  letter  bears  date.  It 
is  the  mention  of  the  expected  arrival  of  the  king  at 
Lyons  within  three  or  four  days.  It  is  not  stated  for 
what  purpose  he  was  coming,  but  the  fact  was  that 
Francis  had  taken  the  field  in  person  to  repel  the 
Spanish  invasion  in  the  south  of  France,  and  was  then 
on  his  way  to  that  portion  of  his  kingdom,  by  way  of 
Lyons,  where  he  arrived  a few  days  afterwards.  The 
reference  to  this  march  of  the  king  fixes  beyond  all 
question  the  date  of  the  letter,  as  really  intended  for 
the  4th  of  August,  1524. 

The  movements  of  Francis  at  this  crisis  become 
important  in  view  of  the  possibility  of  the  publication 
in  any  form  of  the  Yerrazzano  letter  at  Lyons,  at  the 
last  mentioned  date,  or  of  the  possession  of  a copy  of  it 
there  as  claimed  by  Carli  in  his  letter.  The  army  of 
the  emperor,  under  Pescara  and  Bourbon,  crossed  the 


22 


VERRAZZANO. 


‘Alps  and  entered  Provence  early  in  July,  and  before 
the  date  of  the  Verrazzano  letter.* 1  The  intention  to 
do  so  was  known  by  Francis  some  time  previously. 
He  wrote  on  the  28th  of  June  from  Amboise,  near 
Tours,  to  the  Provengaux  that  he  would  march  imme- 
diately to  their  relief;2  and  on  the  2d  of  July  he 
announced  in  a letter  to  his  parliament : “ I am  going 
to  Lyons  to  prevent  the  enemy  from  entering  the 
kingdom,  and  I can  assure  you  that  Charles  de  Bour- 
bon is  not  yet  in  France.” 3 He  had  left  his  residence 
at  Blois  and  his  capital,  and  was  thus  actually  engaged 
in  collecting  his  forces  together,  <on  the  8 th  of  July, 
when  the  Verrazzano  letter  is  dated*  He  did  not 
reach  Lyons  until  .after  the  4th  of  August,  as  is  cor- 
rectly stated  in  the  Carli  letter.4  • 

The  author  of  the  Carli  letter,  whether  the  person 
he  pretends  to  have  been  or  not,  asserts  that  news  of 
the  arrival  of  Verrazzano  at  Dieppe  on  his  return  from 
his  voyage  of  discovery  had  reached  Lyons,  and  that 
the  navigator  himself  was  expected  soon  to  be  in  that 
city  for  the  purpose  of  conferring  with  its  merchants 
on  the  subject  of  the  new  countries  which  he  had  dis- 
covered, and  had  described  in  a letter  to  the  king,  a 
copy  of  which  letter  was  enclosed.  He  thus  explicitly 
declares  not  only  that  news  of  the  discovery  had 
reached  Lyons,  but  that  the  letter  to  the  king  was 
known  to  the  merchants  at  that  place,  and  that  a copy 

• 

1 Letter  of  Bourbon.  Dyer’s  Europe,  442. 

2 Sismondi,  xvi,  216,  217. 

3 Gaillard,  Histoire  de  Francois  Premier , tom.  m,  172  (Paris,  1769). 

4 Letter  of  Moncada  in  Doc.  ined.  para  la  Hist,  de  Espana,  tom.  xxrv, 
403,  and  Letters  of  Pace  to  Wolsey  in  State  Papers  of  the  reign  of  Henry 
VUI,  vol.  iy,  Part  i,  589,  606. 


THE  LETTER  NOT  GENUINE. 


23 


of  it  was  then  actually  in  his  possession  and  sent  with 
his  own.  The  result  of  the  expedition  was,  therefore, 
notorious,  and  the  letter  had  attained  general  publicity 
at  Lyons,  without  the  presence  there  of  either  Francis 
or  Verrazzano. 

This  statement  must  be  false.  Granting  that  such 
a letter,  as  is  ascribed  to  Verrazzano,  had  been  written, 
it  waa  impossible  that  this  obscure  young  man  at 
Lyons,  hundreds  of  miles  from  Dieppe,  Paris  and 
Blois,  away  from  the  king  and  court  and  from  Verraz- 
zano, not  only  at  a great  distance  from  them  all,  but 
at  the  point  to  which  the  king  was  hastening,  and 
had  not  reached,  on  his  way  to  the  scene  of  war  in  the 
southern  portion  of  his  kingdom,  could  have  come 
into  the  possession  of  this  document  in  le^s  than  a 
month  after  it  purports  to  have  been  written  for  the 
king  in  a port  far  in  the  north,  on  the  coast  of  Nor- 
mandy. It  obviously  could  not  have  been  delivered 
to  him  personally  by  Verrazzano,  who  had  not  been 
at  Lyons,  nor  could  it  have,  been  transmitted  to  him 
by  the  navigator,  who  had  not  yet  presented  himself 
before  the  king,  and  could  have  had  no  authority  to 
communicate  it  to  any  person.  It  was  an  official 
report,  addressed  to  the  king,  and  intended  for  his 
eye  alone,  until  .the  monarch  himself  chose  to  make 
it  public.  It  related  to  an  enterprise  of  the  crown, 
and  eminently  concerned  its  interests  and  prerogatives, 
in  the  magnitude  and  importance  of  the  new  countrigs ; 
and  could  not  have  been  sent  by  Verrazzano,  without 
permission,  to  a private  person,  and  especially  a for- 
eigner, without  subjecting  himself  to  the  charge  of 
disloyalty,  if  not  of  treason,  which  there  is  no  other 


24 


VERRAZZANO. 


evidence  to  sustain.  On  the  other  hand  it  could  not 
have  been  delivered  by  the  king  to  this  Carli.  It  is 
not  probable,  even  if  such  a letter  could  have  come 
into  the  hands  of  Francis,  absent  from  his  capital  in 
the  midst  of  warlike  preparations,  engaged  in  forming 
his  army  and  en  route  for  the  scene  of  the  invasion, 
that  he  could  have  given  it  any  consideration.  But  if 
he  had  received  it  and  considered  its  import,  there  was 
no  official  or  other  relation  between  him  and  Carli,  or 
any  motive  for  him  to  send  it  forward  in  advance 
of  his  coming  to  Lyons,  to  this  young  and  obscure 
alien.  There  was  no  possibility,  therefore,  of  Carli 
obtaining  possession  of  a private  copy  of  the  letter 
through  Yerrazzano  or  the  king. 

The  only  way  open  to  him,  under  the  most  favorable 
circumstances,  would  have  been  through  some  pub- 
licity, by  proclamation  or  printing,  by  order  of  the 
king ; in  which  case,  it  would  have  been  given  for  the 
benefit  of  all  his  subjects.  It  is  impossible  that  it 
could  have  been  seen  and  copied  by  this  young  for- 
eigner alone  and  in  the  city  of  Lyons,  and  that  no 
other  copies  would  have  been  preserved  in  all  France. 
The  idea  of  a publication  is  thus  forbidden. 

No  alternative  remains  except  to  pronounce  the 
whole  story  a fabrication.  The  Carli  letter  is  untrue. 
It  did  not  inclose  any  letter  of  Yerrazzano  of  the 
character  pretended.  And  as  it  is  the  only  authority 
fo*  the  existence  of  any  such  letter,  that  falls  with  it. 


NO  DISCOVERY  MADE  FOR  FRANCIS  I. 


25 


III. 

The  Letter  untrue.  I.  No  Voyage  or  Discovery  made 
eor  the  King  of  France,  as  it  states. 

All  the  circumstances  relating  to  the  existence  of 
the  Verrazzano  letter  thus  prove  that  it  was  not  the 
production  of  Verrazzano  at  the  time  and  place  it 
purports  to  have  been  written  by  him.  We  pass  now 
to  the  question  of  its  authenticity,  embracing  the 

consideration  of  its  own  statements  and  the  external 

« * • 

evidence  which  exists  upon  the  subject. 

The  letter  professes  to  give  the  origin  and  results  of 
the  voyage ; that  is,  the  agency  of  the  king  of  France 
in  sending  forth  the  expedition,  and  the  discoveries 
actually  accomplished  by  it.  In  both  respects  it  is 
essentially  untrue.  It  commences  by  declaring  that 

Verrazzano  sailed  under  the  orders  and  on  behalf  of 

* 

the  king  of  France,  for  the  purpose  of  finding  new 
countries,  and  that  the  account  then  presented  was  a 
description  of  the  discoveries  made  in  pursuance  of 
such  instructions.  That  no  such  voyage  or  discoveries 
were  made  for  that  monarch  is  clearly  deducible  from 
the  history  of  France.  Neither  the  letter,  nor  any 
document,  chronicle,  memoir,  or  history  of  any  kind, 
public  or  private,  printed  or  in  manuscript,  belonging 
to  that  period,  or  the  reign  of  Francis  I,  who  then  bore 
the  crown,  mentioning  or  in  any  manner  referring  to 
4 


26 


VERRAZZANO. 


it,  or  to  the  voyage  and  discovery,  has  ever  been  found 
in  France ; and  neither  Francis  himself,  nor  any  of 
his  successors,  ever  acknowledged  or  in  any  manner 
recognized  such  discovery,  or  asserted  under  it  any 
right  to  the  possession  of  the  country ; but,  on  the 
contrary,  both  he  and  they  ignored  it,  in  undertaking 
colonization  in  that  region  by  virtue  of  other  disco- 
veries made  under  their  authority,  or  with  their 
permission,  by  their  subjects. 

I.  That  no  evidence  of  the  Yerrazzano  discovery 
ever  existed  in  France,  is  not  only  necessarily  pre- 
sumed from  the  circumstance  that  none  has  ever  been 
produced,  but  is  inferentially  established  by  the  fact 
that  all  the  French  writers  and  historians,  who  have 
had  occasion  to  consider  the  subject,  have  derived 
their  information  in  regard  to  it  from  the  Italian 
so-called  copies  of  the  letter,  and  until  recently  from 
that  in  Ramusio  alone.  No  allusion  to  the  discovery, 
by  any  of  them,  occurs  until  several  years  after  the 
work  of  Ramusio  was  published,  when  for  the  first 
time  it  is  mentioned  in  the  account  written  by  Ribault, 
in  1563,  of  his  voyage  to  Florida  and  attempted  colo- 
nization at  Port  Royal  in  South  Carolina,  in  the 
previous  year.  Ribault  speaks  of  it  very  briefly,  in 
connection  with  the  discoveries  of  Sebastian  Cabot  and 
others,  as  haying  no  practical  results,  and  states  that 
he  had  derived  his  information  in  regard  to  it,  from 
what  Yerrazzano  had  written,  thus  clearly  referring  to 
the  letter.  He  adds  that  Yerrazzano  made  another 
voyage  to  America  afterwards,  “ where  at  last  he  died.” 
As  Ramusio  is  the  only  authority  known  for  the  lat- 
ter statement,  it  is  evident  that  Ribault  must  have  had 


NO  DISCOVERY  MADE  FOR  FRANCIS  I. 


27 


his  work  before  him,  and  consequently  his  version  of 
the  letter,  when  he  prepared  this  account.1  In  the 
relation  written  by  Laudoniere  in  1566,  but  not  printed 
until  1586,  of  all  three  of  the  expeditions  sent  out  from 
France,  for  the  colonization  of  the  French  protestants, 
mention  is  again  made  of  the  discoveries  of  Verrazzano. 
Laudoniere  gives  no  authority,  but  speaks  of  them  in 
terms  which  show  that  he  made  his  compend  from  the 
discourse  of  the  French  captain  of  Dieppe,  published 
by  Ramusio  in  the  same  volume,  in  connection  with 
the  Yerrazzano  letter.  He  says  that  Yerrazzano  u was 
sent  by  King  Francis  the  First  and  Madame  the 
Regent,  his  mother,  into  these  new  countries.”  In 
thus  associating  the  queen  mother  with  the  king  in 
the  prosecution  of  the.  enterprise  Laudoniere  com- 
mits the  same  mistake  as  is  made  in  the  discourse 
in  that  respect.  Louise  did  not  become  regent  until 
after  the  return  of  Yerrazzano  is  stated  to  have  taken 
place,  and  after  both  his  letter  and  that  of  Carli  are 
represented  to  have  been  written.2  In  adopting  this 
error  it  is  plain  that  Laudoniere  must  have  taken  it 

1 The  original  narrative  of  Ribault,  in  French,  has  never  appeared  in 
print.  It  was  probably  suppressed  at  the  time  for  political  reasons,  as  the 
colony  was  intended  for  the  benefit  of  the  protestants  of  France.  It  was, 
however,  translated  immediately  into  English  and  printed  in  1563,  under 
the  following  title : “ The  whole  and  true  discoverye  of  Terra  Florida  &c 
never  found  out  before  the  last  year,  1562.  Written  in  French  by  Captain 
Ribault  &c  and  now  newly  set  forthe  in  Englishe  the  XXX  of  May,  1563. 
Prynted  at  London,  by  Rowland  Hall,  for  Thomas  Hacket.”  This  trans- 
lation was  reprinted  by  Hakluyt  in  his  first  work,  Divers  Voyages,  in  1582  ; 
but  was  omitted  by  him  in  his  larger  collections,  and  the  account  by 
Laudoniere,  who  accompanied  Ribault,  of  that  and  the  two  subsequent 
expeditions,  substituted  in  its  stead. 

2 The  edict  appointing  Louise  regent,  was  dated  at  Pignerol,  the  17th  of 
October,  1524,  when  Francis  was  en  route  for  Milan.  Isambert,  Becueil,  &c., 
tom.  xii,  part  i,  p.  230. 


28 


VERRAZZANO. 


from  the  work  of  Ramusio,  as  the  discourse  of  the 
French  captain  is  found  in  no  other  place,  and  there- 
fore used  that  work.  He  also  speaks  of  the  discovered 
country  being  called  Francesca,  as  mentioned  in  the 
discourse.1 

The  Yerrazzano  discovery  is  referred  to,  for  the  first 
time,  in  any  work  printed  in  France,  in  1.570,  in  a 
small  folio  volume  called  the  Universal  History  of  the 
World , by  Frangois  de  Belleforest,  a compiler  of  no 
great  authority.  In  describing  Canada,  he  charac- 
terizes the  natives  as  cannibals,  and  in  proof  of  the 
charge  repeats  the  story,  which  is  found  in  Rattmsio 
only,  of  Yerrazzano  having  been  killed,  roasted  and 
eaten  by  them,  and  then  proceeds  with  a short  account 
of  the  country  and  its  inhabitants,  derived,  as  he 
states,  from  what  Yerrazzano  had  written  to  King 
Francis.2  He  does  not  mention  where  he  obtained 
this  account,  but  his  reference  to  the  manner  in  which 
Yerrazzano  came  to  his  death,  shows  that  he  had  con- 
sulted the  volume  of  Ramusio.  Five  years  later  the 
same  writer  gave  to  the  world  an  enlarged  edition  of 
his  work,  with  the  title  of  The  Universal  Cosmography 
of  the  World , in  three  ponderous  folios,  in  which 
he  recites,  more  at  length,  the  contents  of  the  Yerraz- 
zano letter,  also  without  mentioning  where  he  had 
found  it,  but  disclosing  nevertheless  that  it  was  in 
Ramusio,  by  his  following  the  variations  of  that 
version,  particularly  in  regard  to  the  complexion  of 
the  natives  represented  to  have  been  first  seen,  as  they 

1 Basanier,  L'Histoire  notable  de  la  Floride.  (Paris,  1586),  fol.  1-3.  Hak- 
luyt, in,  p.  305.  Ramusio,  m,  fol.  423.  (Ed.  1556.) 

2 lillistoire  Universelle  du  Monde.  Par  Frangois  de  Belleforest.  (Paris 
1570,  fol.  253  - 4.) 


NO  DISCOVERY  MADE  FOR  FRANCIS  I. 


29 


will  be  hereafter  explained.1  This  publication  of 
Belleforest  is  the  more  important,  because  it  is  from 
the  abstract  of  the  Yerrazzano  letter  contained  in  it, 
that  Lescarbot,  thirty-four  years  afterwards,  took  his 
account  of  the  voyage  and  discovery,  word  for  word, 
without  acknowledgment.2  The  latter  writer  has  ac- 
cordingly been  cited  by  subsequent  authors  as  an 
original  authority  on  the  subject,  among  others  by 
Bergeron,3  and  the  commissioners  of  the  king  of 
France,  in  the  controversy  with  his  Britannic  majesty 

1 La  Cosmographie  TJniverselle  de  tout  le  Monde , tom.  n,  Tpart  n,  2175  - 9. 
(Paris,  1575.) 

2 Hist,  de  la  Nouvelle  France,  p.  27,  et  seq.  (ed.  1609).  In  a subsequent 
portion  of  his  history  (p.  244)  Lescarbot  again  refers  incidentally  to  Ver. 
razzano  in  connection  with  Jacques  Cartier,  to  whom  he  attributes  a pre- 
posterous statement,  acknowledging  the  Verrazzano  discovery.  He  states 
that  in  1533  Cartier  made  known  to  Chabot,  then  admiral  of  France,  his 
willingness  “ to  discover  countries,  as  the  Spanish  had  done,  in  the  West 
Indies,  and  as,  nine  years  before,  Jean  Verrazzano  (had  done)  under  the 
authority  of  King  Francis  I,  which  Verrazzano,  being  prevented  by  death, 
had  not  conducted  any  colony  into  the  lands  he  had  discoyered,  and  had 
only  remarked  the  coast  from  about  the  thirtieth  degree  of  the  Terre-neuve, 
which  at  the  present  day  they  call  Florida,  as  far  as  the  fortieth.  For  the 
purpose  of  continuing  his  design,  he  offered  his  services,  if  it  were  the  plea- 
sure of  the  king,  to  furnish  him  with  the  necessary  means.  The  lord 
admiral  having  approved  these  words,  represented  then  to  his  majesty, 
&c.”  Lescarbot  gives  no  authority  for  this  statement,  made  by  him 
seventy-five  years  after  the  voyage  of  Cartier.  It  is  absurd  on  its  face  and 
is  contradicted  by  existing  records  of  that  voyage.  No  authority  has  ever 
confined  the  Verrazzano  discovery  within  the  limits  here  mentioned.  Car- 
tier  is  represented  as  saying  to  the  admiral  that  in  order  to  complete  Ver- 
razzano’s  design  of  carrying  colonists  to  the  country  discovered  by  him, 
that  is,  within  those  limits,  he  would  go  himself,  if  the  king  would  accept 
his  services.  The  documents  recently  published  from  the  archives  of  St. 
Malo,  show  that  the  voyage  of  Cartier  proposed  h}*-  Cartier,  was  for  the 
purpose  of  passing  through  the  straits  of  Belle  Isle,  in  latitude  52°,  tar 
north  of  the  northern  limit  of  the  Verrazzano  discovery,  according  to 
either  version  of  the  letter,  and  not  with  a design  of  planting  a colony,  or 
going  to  any  part  of  the  Verrazzano  explorations,  much  less  to  a point 
‘south  of  the  fortieth  degree.  (Rame,  Documents  inedits  sur  Jacques  Cartier 
et  le  Canada , p.  3,  Tross,  Paris,  1865.)  Besses,  neither  in  the  commissions 
to  Cartier,  nor  in  any  of  the  accounts  of  his  voyages,  is  there  the  slightest 
allusion  to  Verrazzano. 

3 Traicte  dies  Navigations , p.  103,  § 15. 


30 


VERRAZZANO. 


in  relation  to  the  limits  of  Acadia ; 1 but,  as  this  pla- 
giarism proves,  without  reason.  Charlevoix,  with  a 
proper  discrimination,  refers  directly  to  Ramusio  as  the 
sole  source  from  whence  the  account  of  the  discovery 
is  derived,  as  do  the  French  writers  who  have  men- 
tioned it  since  his  time,  except  M.  Margry,  who,  in 
his  recent  work  on  the  subject  of  French  voyages, 
quotes  from  the  Carli  version.  It  is  thus  seen  that 
no  other  authority  is  given  by  the  French  historians 
than  one  or  other  of  the  Italian  versions.2  It  must, 
therefore,  ba  regarded  as  confessed  by  them,  that  no 

1 Memoirs  des  Commissaries  du  Roi , &c.,  i,  29. 

2 Andre  Thevet,  who  published  a work  with  the  title  of  Cosmographie 
Universelle,  in  two  volumes,  large  folio,  in  rivalry,  apparently  with  Belle- 
forest,  and  in  the  same  year,  1575,  is  referred  to  sometimes  as  an  authority 
on  this  subject.  Speaking  of  the  cruel  disposition  of  the  people  of  Canada, 
he  mentions  in  illustration  of  it,  the  fate  at  their  hands  of  some  colonists 
whom  Yerrazzano  took  to  that  country.  The  fact  is  thus  related  by  him 
in  connection  With  this  voyage,  for  which  he  gives  no  authority  or  indica- 
tion of  any.  “ Jean  Yerazze,  a Florentine,  left  Dieppe,  the  seventeenth  of 
March , one  thousand  five  hundred  and  twenty-four,  by  command  of  King 
Francis,  and  coasted  the  whole  of  Florida  as  far  as  the  thirty-fourth  degree 
of  latitude,  and  the  three  hundredth  of  longitude,  and  explored  all  this 
coast,  and  placed  there  a number  of  people  to  cultivate  it , who  in  the  end 
were  all  killed  arjd  massacred  by  this  barbarous  people”  (fol.  1002  B.). 
This  statement  seems  to  justify  what  the  President  De  Thou,  the  contempo- 
rary of  Thevet,  says  of  him,  that  he  composed  his  books  by  putting  “ the 
uncertain  for  the  certain,  and  the  false  for  the  true,  with  an  astonishing 
assurance.”  {Hist.  Univ.,  tom.  n,  651,  Lond.,  1734.)  Thevet  had  published 
before  this,  in  1557,  another  book,  called  Les  Singularitez  de  la  France 
Antarctique,  autrement  nommee  Amerique,  in  which  he  describes  all  the 
countries  of  America  as  far  north  as  Labrador,  and  says  that  he  ran  up  the 
coast  to  that  region  on  his  way  home  from  Brazil,  where  he  went  in  1555, 
with  Villegagnon.  In  this  earlier  work  he  makes  no  mention  of  Veriaz- 
zano ; but  does  say  that  Jacques  Cartier  told  him  that  he  (Cartier)  had 
made  the  voyage  to  America  twice  (fol.  148-9).  It  is  thus  evident  that 
Thevet  had  not  heard  of  Verrazzano  in  1557,  or  he  would  necessarily  have 
mentioned  him,  as  he  had  the  subject  distinctly  before  him  ; and  if  he  is  to 
be  believed  in  regard  to  his  intimacy  with  Cartier,  with  whom  he  says  he 
spent  five  months  at  his  house  in  St.  Malo  {Cos.  Univ.,  fol.  1014,  B.),  and 
from  whom  he  received  much  information,  it  is  quite  as  clear  that  Cartier 
knew  nothing  of  the  Verrazzano  discovery,  or  he  would  have  mentioned 
it  to  Thevet. 


NO  DISCOVERY  MADE  FOR  FRANCIS  I.  31 

original  authority  for  the  discovery  has  ever  existed  in 
France. 

If  any  voyage  had  taken  place,  such  as  this  is 
alleged  to  have  been,  it  is  morally  impossible,  in  the 
state  of  learning  and  .art  at  that  time  in  France,  and 
with  the  interest  which  must  necessarily  have  attached 
to  the  discovery,  that  no  notice  should  have  been  taken 
of  it  in  any  of  the  chronicles  or  histories  of  the 
country,  and  that  the  memory  of  it  should  not  have 
been  preserved  in  some  of  the  productions  of  its  press. 
According  to  the  letter  itself,  it  was  one  of  the  grand- 
est achievements  in  the  annals  of  discovery,  and 
promised  the  most  important  results  to  France.  It 
was  an  enterprise  of  her  king,  which  had  been  success- 
fully accomplished.  There  had  been  discovered  a 
heathen  land,  nearly  three  thousand  miles  in  extent, 
before  unknown  to  the  civilized  world,  and,  therefore, 
open  to  subjugation  and  settlement ; healthy,  populous, 
fertile  and  apparently  rich  in  gold  and  aromatics,  and, 
therefore,  an  acquisition  as  great  and  valuable  as  any 
discovery  made  by  the  Spaniards  or  Portuguese,  except 
that  of  Columbus.  Silence  and  indifference  in  regard 
to  such  an  event  were  impossible.  Printing  introduced 
long  previously  into  the  principal  cities  in  France, 
had  early  in  this  reign  reached  its  highest  state  of 
perfection,  as  the  works  issued  from  the  presses  of 
Henri  Estienne  and  others  attest.  In  1521  twenty- 
four  persons  practiced  the  art  in  Paris  alone.1  The 
discoveries  in  the  new  world  by  other  nations  excited 
as  much  attention  in  France  as  they  did  in  the  other 
countries  of  Europe.  The  letters  of  Columbus  and 


1 Didot  in  Harrisse  Bib . Am.  Vet.,  189. 


32 


VERRAZZANO. 


Vespucci,  describing  their  voyages  and  the  countries 
they  had  found,  were  no  sooner  published  abroad  than 
they  were  translated  into  French  and  printed  in  Paris. 
From  1515  to  1529  several  editions  of'  the  Italian 
collection  of  voyages,  known  js  the  Paesi  novamente 
ritrovati , containing  accounts  of  the  discoveries  of 
Columbus,  Cortereal,  Cabral  and  Vespucci  in  America, 
and  in  1532  the  Decades  of  Peter  Martyr,  were  trans- 
lated and  published  in  Paris,  in  the  French  language. 
Cartier’s  account  of  his  voyage  in  1535-6,  under- 
taken by  order  of  Francis,  in  which  he  discovered 
Canada,  was  printed  in  the  same  city  in  1545,  during 
the  reign  of  that  monarch.  These  publications 
abundantly  prove  the  interest  which  was  taken  in 
France  in  the  discoveries  in  the  new  world,  and  the 
‘disposition  and  efforts  of  the  printers  in  the  country 
at  that  time  to  supply  the  people  with  information  on 
the  subject ; and  also,  that  the  policy  of  the  crown 
allowed  publicity  to  be  given  to  its  own  maritime 
enterprises.  Of  the  enlightened  interest  on  the  part 
of  the  crown  in  the  new  discoveries,  a memorable 
instance  is  recorded,  having  a direct  and  important 
bearing  upon  this  question.  A few  months  only  after 
the  alleged  return  of  Verrazzano,  and  at  the  darkest  hour 
in  the  reign  of  Francis,  when  he  was  a captive  of  the 
emperor  in  Spain,  Pigafetta,  who  had  accompanied  the 
expedition  of  Magellan  and  kept  a journal  of  the 
voyage,  presented  himself  at  the  court  of  France. 
Louise  was  then  exercising  the  powers  and  prerogatives 
of  her  son,  and  guarding  his  interests  and  honor  with 
maternal  zeal.  Pigafetta  came  to  offer  her  a copy  of 
the  manuscript  which  he  had  prepared,  and  which 


NO  DISCOVERY  MADE  FOR  FRANCIS  I. 


33 


told  of  the  discovery  of  the  newly  discovered  route 
to  the  Moluccas  and  Cathay.  It  was  written  in  Italian ; 
and  the  queen  mother  caused  it  to  be  translated  into 
French  by  Antoine  Fabre,  and  printed  by  Simon  de 
Colines,  the  successor  of ‘Estienne.  The  book  bears 
no  date,  but  bibliographers  assign  it  that  of  1525,  the 
year  of  the  regency.  Certain  it  is,  it  was  printed  in 
Paris  during  the  life  of  Francis,  as  Colines,  whose 
imprint  it  bears,  died  before  the  king.  Thus  by  the 
instrumentality  of  the  crown  of  France  was  the 
account  of  the  discovery  of  Magellan,  written  by  one 
who  belonged  to  the  expedition,  first  given  to  the 
world.  It  is  not  probable  that  the  queen  mother, 
exercising  the  regal  power  immediately  after  the 
alleged  return  of  Yerrazzano,  would  have  left  entirely 
unnoticed  and  unpublished  an  account  of  his  discovery, 
so  interesting  to  the  subjects  of  the  king  and  so  glori- 
ous to  France,  and  yet  have  caused  to  be  put  forth 
within  his  realm  in  its  stead,  the  history  of  a like 
enterprise,  redounding  to  the  glory  of  the  great  rival 
and  enemy  of  her  son.1 

II.  Conclusive  as  the  silence  of  the  history  of  France 
is  against  the  assertion  that  the  Yerrazzano  voyage 
and  discovery  were  made  by  direction  of  her  king,  the 
life  of  Francis  is  a complete  denial  of  it.  He  was 
released  from  his  captivity  early  in  1526,  and  lived  and 

’ 1 The  little  book  of  Pigafetta,  a copy  of  which,  by  the  kindness  of  Mrs. 
John  Carter  Brown,  of  Providence,  is  now  in  our  hands,  bears  the  title  of 
Le  voyages  et  navigation  f 'aid  par  les  Espaignols  es  Isles  de  Molucques,  &c.  It 
is  fully  described  by  M.  Harrisse  in  his  Bib.  Vet.  Am.  The  concluding 
paragraph  contains  the  statement  that  the  manuscript  was  presented  to  the 
queen  regent.  Ramusio  -(vol.  i,  346),  mentions  the  fact  that  it  was  given 
by  her  to  Fabre  to  be  translated.  The  particulars  are  detailed  by  Amoretti. 
Primo  Viaggio , Introd.  xxxvii.  Premier  Voyage , xliv. 

5 


34 


VERRAZZANO. 


reigned  over  France  for  more  than  twenty  years  after- 
wards, active  in  promoting  the  greatness  of  his  king- 
dom ; encouraging  science  and  art  among  his  people, 
and  winning  the  title  of  father  of  letters ; awake  to 
whatever  concerned  his  royal  rights  and  prerogatives, 
and  maintaining  them  with  might  and  vigor  abroad 
as  well  as  at  home ; and  willing  and  able  to  obtain 
and  occupy  new  countries  inhabited  by  the  heathen. 
That  he  was  not  insensible  to  the  advantages  to  his 
crown  and  realm  of  colonies  in  America,  and  not  with- 
out the  ability  and  disposition  to  prosecute  discoveries 
there  for  the  purpose  of  settlement,  is  proven  by  his 
actually  sending  out  the  expeditions  of  Jacques  Cartier 
in  1534  and  1535  and  Cartier  and  Roberval  in  1541  - 2, 
for  the  purpose  of  exploring  and  developing  the  region 
beyond  the  gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  through  the  icy  way 
of  the  straits  of  Belle  Isle,  in  latitude  52°  N. 

Yet  he  never  recognized  by  word  or  deed  the  voyage 
or  discovery  of  Yerrazzano.  If  any  one  in  France 
could  have  known  of  them,  surely  it  would  have 
been  he  who  had  sent  forth  the  expedition.  If  Yerraz- 
zano were  dead,  when  Francis  returned  to  his  kingdom, 
and  the  letter  had  miscarried  and  never  come  to  his 
hands,  the  knowledge  of  the  discovery  still  would 
have  existed  in  the  bosom  of  fifty  living  witnesses, 
who  composed  the  crew,  according  to  the  story ; and 
through  them  the  results  of  the  voyage  would  have 
been  communicated  to  the  king.  But  Yerrazzano  was 
not  dead  at  that  time,  but  was  alive,  as  will  appear 
hereafter,  in  1527.  There  is  good  reason  to  believe 
that  he  was  well  known  then  to  the  royal  advisers. 
One  of  the  first  acts  of  the  king  after  his  return  from 


NO  DISCOVERY  MADE  FOR  FRANCIS  I.  35 

Spain  was  to  create  Phillipe  Chabot,  Sieur  de  Brion, 
the  admiral  of  France,  whereby  that  nobleman  became 
invested  on  the  23d  of  March,  1526,  with  the  charge 
of  the  royal  marind.1  A document  has  recently  been 
brought  to  light  from  among  the  manuscripts  in  the 
Bibliotheque  Nationale  in  Paris,  purporting  to  be  an 
agreement  made  by  Chabot  in  his*  official  capacity,  with 
Jean  Ango,  of  Dieppe,  and  other  persons,  including 
Jehan  de  Yaresam,  for  a voyage  to  the  Indies  with  two 
vessels  belonging  to  the  king,  and  one  to  Ango,  to  be 
conducted  by  Yaresam,  as  master  pilot,  for  the  purpose 
ostensibly  of  bringing  back  a cargo*  of  spices.2  This 
instrument  has  no  date,  but  on  its  face  belongs  to 
Chabot’ s administration  of  the  admiralty,  and  must, 
therefore,  have  been  drawn  up  in  the  year  1526  or 
that  of  Yerrazzano’s  death,  in  1527.  If  it  be  genuine, 
it  proves  not  only  that  Yerrazzano  was  alive  in  that 
period,  but  was  known  to  the  admiral,  and,  conse- 
quently, that  any  services  which  he  had  previously 
rendered  must  have  been  in  the  possession  of  the 
crown.  In  either  case,  however,  whether  Yerrazzano 
were  dead  or  alive  when  Francis  resumed  his  royal 
functions,  there  is  no  reason  why  the  discovery,  if  it 
had  ever  taken  place,  should  not  have  been  known  by 
him. 

. In  sending  forth  the  expeditions  of  Jacques  Cartier 
and  the  joint  expeditions  of  Cartier  and  Koberval, 
Francis  not  only  showed  his  interest  in  the  discovery 
of  new  countries,  but  he  acted  in  perfect  ignorance  of 
the  Yerrazzano  discovery.  If  it  were  known  to  him, 


1Pere  Anselme,  iv,  571. 

2 M.  Margry.  Navigations  Frangaises,  p.  194.  See  Appendix. 


36 


YERRAZZANO. 


upon  what  rational  theory  would  he  have  attempted 
new  voyages  of  discovery  in  a cold  and  inhospitable 
region,  on  an  uncertain  search,  instead  of  developing 
what  had  been  found  for  him  f What  could  he 
have  expected  to  have  accomplished  by  the  new 
expeditions  that  had  not  been  already  fully  effected  by 
Yerrazzano  ? And,  especially  after  the  way  to  Canada* 
was  found  out  by  Cartier,  what  was  there  more  invit- 
ing in  that  unproductive  quarter  than  was  promised 
in  the  temperate  climate,  fertile  soil,  and  mineral 
lands,  which  the  Florentine  had  already  discovered  in 
his  name,  that  he  should  .have  sent  Cartier  and 
Roberval  to  settle  and  conquer  the  newer  land  ? 1 

With  the  failure  of  the  expedition  of  Roberval, 
Francis  abandoned  the  attempt  to  discover  new 
countries,  or  plant  colonies  in  America ; but  his  suc- 
cessors, though  much  later,  entered  upon  the  colo- 
nization of  New  France.  They  inherited  his  rights, 
and  while  they  acknowledged  the  discoveries  of 
Cartier  they  discredited  those  ascribed  to  Yerrazzano. 
Of  the  latter  claim  all  of  them  must-have  known. 
The  publication  of  Ramusio  took  place  during  the 
reign  of  Henry  II,  who  died  in  1559 ; but  he  made  no 

1 The  letters  issuedfcto  Roberval  have  been  recently  published,  for  the  first 
time,  by  M.  Harrisse,  from  the  archives  of  France,  in  his  Notes  pour  ser - 
mr  a VTiistoire  de  la  Nouvelle  France , -p.  244,  et  seq.  (Paris,  1872.)  They 
are  dated  the  16th  of  February,  1540.  Cartier’s  commission  for  the  same 
service  is  dated,  in  October,  1540.  Charlevoix,  misled  probably  by  the 
letters  granted  by  Henry  IV  to  the  Marquis  de  la  Roche  in  1598,  in  which 
the  letters  to  Roberval  are  partially  recited,  asserts  that  Roberval  is  styled 
in  them  lord  of  Norumbega.  The  letters  now  published  show  that  he  was 
in  error ; and  that  France  limited  the  authority  of  Roberval  to  the  countries 
west  of  the  gulf  of  St.  Lawrence  (Canada  and  Ochelaga),  so  far  as  any 
are  named  or  described,  and  made  no  reference  to  Norumbega  as  a title  of 
Roberval  or  otherwise.  As  the  year  commenced  at  Easter  the  date  of 
Roberval’s  commission  was  in  fact  after  that  of  Cartier. 


| (Fol.187.) 


o'  ‘g 
j£c2 
£ 

J re 

B § 

•oc  o 

O -r-l 
0£ 
X •■* 

o P3 
^ o 

D -Z 

a 

a 4 

o lO 

a 4- 

*H  in 
ri  m 


The  JSngUslv  names  are  here,  added . 


NO  DISCOVERY  MADE  FOR  FRANCIS  I. 


37 


endeavor  to  plant  colonies  abroad.  In  1577  and  1578, 
the  first  commissions  looking  to  possessions  in  America 
north  of  Florida,  were  issued  by  Henry  III,  to  the 
Marquis  de  la  Boche,  authorizing  settlements  in  the 
terres  neufves  and  the  adjacent  countries  newly  dis- 
covered, in  the  occupancy  of  barbarians,  but  nothing 
was  done  under  them.  In  1598,  another  grant  was 
made  to  the  same  person  by  Henry  IV,  for  the  con- 
quest of  Canada,  Hochelaga,  Newfoundland,  Labrador, 
the  country  of  the  river  St.  Lawrence,  Norumbega, 
and  other  countries  adjacent.  This  is  the  first  docu- 
ment emanating  from  the  crown,  containing  any 
mention  of  any  part  of  the  continent  north  of  latitude 
33°  and  south  of  Cape  Breton. 

Norumbega  is  the  only,  country  of  those  here  enu- 
merated which  is  included  within  those  lirriits , and 
that  did  not  become  known  through  VeVrazzano.1  No 

* Norumbega  embraced  the  region  of  country  extending  from  the  land 
of  the  Bretons  to  the  Penobscot,  of  which  it  was  regarded  as  the  Indian 
name.  It  was  almost  identical  with  what  was  subsequently  called  Acadia. 
It  had  become  known  at  an  early  period  through  the  French  fishermen 
and  traders  in  peltries,  who  obtained  the  name  from  the  Indians  and  carried 
it  home  to  France.  It  is  described  by  Jean  Alfonse,  the  chief  pilot  of 
Roberval,  from  an  exploration  which  he  made  along  the  coast  on  the  occa- 
sion of  Roberval’s  expedition  to  Canada,  in  1542.  (Hakluyt,  in,  239-40. 
MS.  cosmography  of  Alfonse,  in  Bib.  Nat.  of  Paris , fol.  185.)  Alfonse 
states  that  he  ran  down  the  coast  as  far  as  a bay  which  he  did  not  pene- 
trate, in  latitude  42°,  between  Norumbega  and  Florida,  showing  that 
Norumbega  was  considered  as  north  of  that  parallel  of  latitude.  He  par- 
ticularly describes  it  in  the  manuscript  just  cited,  which  Hakluyt  had  before 
him,  as  the  ruttier  of  Alfonse  which  he  publishes  is  (bund  in  that  manu- 
script. It  appears  to  have  been  written  by  Alfonse  in  1544-  5,  which  was 
shortly  after  his  return  from  Canada  with  Roberval.  The  name  of  No- 
rumbega is  found  in  the  discourse  of  the  captain  of  Dieppe,  written  in 
1539,  and  printed  in  third  volume  of  Ramusio.  This  writer  distinctly 
states  that  the  name  was  derived  from  the  natives.  The  description  of  the 
country  and  its  inhabitants  given  by  Alfonse,  is  important,  as  . showing  its 
extent,  and  alluding  to  the  trade  there  in  peltries  thus  early.  It  is  found 
in  the  cosmography  in  connection  with  the  ruttier  before  mentioned  (fol. 
187  - 8),  and  is  as  follows : 


38 


VERRAZZANO. 


allusion  is  made,  in  these  letters  of  de  la  Rodhe,  to  any 
previous  exploration,  although  an  erroneous  recital, 

“ I say  that  the  cape  of  S.  Jehan,  called  Cape  Breton  and  the  cape  of  the 
Franciscan e,  are  northeast  and  southwest,  and  take  a quarter  of  east  and 
west  and  there  is  in  the  route  one  hundred  and  forty  leagu.es.  And  here 
makes  a cape  called  the  cape  of  Noroveregue.  This  said  cape  is  at  forty-five 
degrees  of  the  height  of  the  arctic  pole.  The  said  coast  is  all  sandy  land, 
low  without  any  mountain.  And  along  this  coast  there  are  several  islands 
of  sand  and  coast  very  dangerous,  with  banks  and  rocks.  The  people  of 
this  coast  and  of  Cape  Breton  are  bad  people,  powerful,  great  archers 
and  live  on  fish  and  flesh.  They  speak,  as  it  were,  the  same  language  as 
those  of  Canada,  and  are  a great  nation.  And  those  of  Cape  Breton  go 
and  make  war  upon  those  of  Newfoundland  ( Terre  Neufve),  where  they 
fish.  On  no  account  would  they  save  the  life  of  a person  when  they  cap- 
ture him,  if  it  be  not  a child  or  young  girl,  and  are  so  cruel  that  if  they  find 
a man  wearing  a beard,  they  cut  his  limbs  off  and  carry  them  to  their 
wives  and  children,  in  order  to  be  revenged  in  that  matter.  And  there  is 
among  them  much  peltry  of  all  animals.  Beyond  the  cape  of  Noroveregue 
[Cape  Sable]  descends  the  river  of  the  said  Noroveregue  which  is 
about  twenty-five  leagues  from  the  cape.  The  said  river  is  more  than  forty 
leagues  broad  at  its  mouth,  and  exterfds  this  width  inward  well  thirty  or 
forty  leagues,  and  is  all  full  of  islands  which  enter  ten  or  twelve  leagues 
into  the  sea,  and  it  is  very  dangerous  with  rocks  and  reefs.  The  said  river 
is  at  forty-two  degrees  of  the  height  of  the  arctic  pole.  Fifteen  leagues 
within  this  river  is  a city  which  is  called  Norombergue,  and  there  are  in  it 
good  people  and  there  is  much  peltry  of  all  animals.  The  people  of  the 
city  are  clothed  with  peltry,  wearing  mantles  of  martin.  I suspect  the  said 
river  enters  into  the  river  of  Ochelaga,  for  it  is  salt  more  than  forty  league 
inward,  according  to  what  is  said  by  the  people  of  the  city.  The  people 
use  many  words,  which  resemble  Latin,  aud  adore  the  spn ; and  are  hand- 
some and  large  men.  The  land  of  Norobregue  is  tolerably  high.  On  the 
side  op  the  west  of  the  said  city  there  are  many  rocks  which  run  into  the 
sea  well  fifteen  leagues ; and  on  the  side  towards  the  north  there  is  a bay 
in  which  there  is  a little  island  which  is  very  subject  to  tempest  and  can- 
not be  inhabited.” 

Two  sketches  of  the  coast  by  Alfonse  accompany  this  description,  which 
are  here  reproduced  united  in  one.  The  map  in  Ramusio  (in,  fol.  424  - 5), 
prepared  by  G-astaldi,  shows  the  Terra  de  Nurumbega , 6f  the  same  extent 
as  here  described,  that  is,  from  Cape  Breton  westerly  to  a river  runping 
north  from  the  Atlantic  and  connecting  with  the  St.  Lawrence  or  river  of 
Hochelaga.  Gastaldi,  or  Gastaldo,  published  previously  an  edition  of  Ptol- 
emy's Geography  (12mo.,  Venice,  1548),  in  which  (map  56),  NorUmbega 
is  similarly  laid  down,  without  the  river  running  to  the  St.  Lawrence. 
Norumbega  was  therefore  a well  defined  district  of  country  at  that  time. 

The  word  was  undoubtedly  derived  from  the  Indians,  and  is  still  in  use 
by  those  of  the  Penobscot,  to  denote  certain  portions  of  that  river.  The 
missionary  Vetromile,  in  his  History  of  the  Abnakis  (New  York,  1866), 


NO  DISCOVERY  MADE  FOR  FRANCIS  I. 


39 


already  alluded  to,  is  made  to  a purpose  of  Francis  I, 
in  his  commission  to  Eoberval,  to  conquer  the  coun- 
tries here  indicated.1  De  la  Roche  made  a miserable 

observes  (pp.  48-9):  “ Nolumbega  means  a still-water  between  falls,  of 
which  there  are  several  in  that  river.  At  different  times,  travelling  in  a 
canoe  along  the  Penobscot,  I have  heard  the  Indians  calling  those  localities 
Nolumbega 

That  the  country  did  not  become  known  through  Verrazzano  is  evident 
from  the  letter,  in  which  it  is  stated  that  he  ran  along  the  entire  coast,  from 
the  harbor’  in  which  they  remained  fifteen  days,  one  hundred  and  fifty 
leagues,  easterly,  that  is  from  Cape  Cod  to  the  island  of  Cape  Breton,  with- 
out landing,  and  consequently  without  having  any  correspondence  with  the 
natives,  so  as  to  have  acquired  the  name. 

When  in  particular  Alfonse  ran  along  the  Atlantic  coast  is  not  mentioned, 
though  it  is  to  be  inferred  that  it  was  on  the  occasion  of  Roberval’s  expe- 
dition. There  is  nothing  stated,  it  is  true,  to  preclude  the  possibility  of  its 
having  taken  place  on  some  other  voyage  previously.  It  could  not  have 
been  afterwards,  as  the  cosmography  describing  it  waS*  written  in  1544-5, 
Some  authors  assert  that  Roberval  despatched  him  towards  Labrador  with 
a view  of  finding  a passage  to  the  East  Indies,  without  mentioning  his 
exploration  along  Nova  Scotia  and  New  England.  But  Le  Clerc,  who 
seems  to  have  been  the  author  of  this  statement  {Premier  Etablissement  de 
la  Foy  dans  la  Nouvelle  France,  i,  12-13.  Paris,  1691),  and  who  is  fol- 
lowed by  Charlevoix,  also  alleges  that  on  the  occasion  of  his  exploration 
towards  Labrador,  he  discovered  the  straits  between  it  and  Newfoundland, 
in  latitude  52°,  now  known  as  the  straits  of  Belle  Isle,  which  is  not  correct. 
Jacques  Cartier  sailed  through  that  passage  in  his  first  voyage  to  Canada, 
in  1584.  Le  Clerc  either  drew  false  inferences  or  relied  upon  false  informa- 
tion. He  probably  derived  his  impression  of  the  voyage  to  Labrador  and 
the  discovery  of  the  straits  by  Alfonse,  from  a cursory  reading  of  the 
cosmography  of  Alfonse,  who  describes  these  straits,  but  not  as  a dis- 
covery of  his  own. 

In  the  printed  work,  called  Les  voyages  avanture'dx  du  Gapitaine  Jean 
Alphonee,  Saintongeois , which  was  first  published  in  1559,  after  the  death 
of  Alfonse,  it  is  expressly  stated  that  the  river  of  Norumbega,  was  dis- 
covered by  the  Portuguese  and  Spaniards.  Describing  the  great  bank,  he 
says  that  it  runs  from  Labrador,  “ au  nordest  et  suroest,  une  partie  a oest- 
suroest,  plus  de  huit  cens  lieues,  et  passe  bien  quatre  vingts  lieues  de  la 
terre  neufue,  et  de  la  terre  des  Bretons  trente  ou  quarante  lieues.  Et  d’icy 
va  tout  au  long  de  la  coste  iusques a la  riviere  du^Norembergue,  qui  est 
nouvellement  descouverte  par  les  Portugalois  et  EspagnolsP  p.  58.  We 
quote  from  an  edition  of  the  work  not  mentioned  by  the  bibiographers 
(Brunet  — Harrisse),  printed  aft  Rouen  in  1602.  This  is  almost  a contem- 
porary denial  by  a French  author,  whether  Alfonse  himself  or  a compiler, 
as  it  would  rather  appear,  from  his  cosmography,  of  the  Verrazzano 
discovery  of  this  country. 

1 Lescarbot  (ed.  1609),  434.  Harrisse,  Notes  de  la  Nouvelle  France,  p.  243. 


40 


VERRAZZANO. 


attempt  to  settle  the  island  of  Sable,  a sand  bank  in 
the  ocean,  two  degrees  south  of  Cape  Breton,  with 
convicts  taken  from  jails  of  France,  but  being  repelled 
by  storm  and  tempest,  after  leaving  that  island,  from 
landing  on  the  main  coast,  returned  to  France  without 
any  further  attempt  to  colonize  the  country,  and 
abandoning  the  poor  malefactors  on  the  island  to  a 
terrible  fate.1  There  is  therefore  no  acknowledgment, 
in  the  history  of  this  enterprise,  of  the  pretended  dis- 
covery. The  next  act  of  the  regal  prerogative  was  a 
grant  to  the  Sieur  de  Monts,  by  the  same  monarch  in 
1603,  authorizing  him  to  take  possession  of  the 
country,  coasts  and  confines  of  La  Cadie,  extending 
from  latitude  40°  N.  to  46°  N.,  that  is,  Nova  Scotia 
and  New  England,  the  situation  of  which,  it  is  alleged, 
De  Monts  understood  from  his  previous  voyages  to 
the  country.2  This  document  also  is  utterly  silent  as 
to  any  particular  discovery  of  the  country ; but  it  dis- 
tinctly affirms  that  the  foundation  of  the  claim  to  this 
territory  was  the  report  of  the  captains  of  vessels, 
pilots,  merchants  and  others,  who  had  for  a long  time 
frequented  the  country  ahd  trafficked  with  its  inhabit- 
ants. Accompanying  these  letters  patent  was  a license 
to  De  Monts  to  trade  with  the  natives  of  the  St. 
Lawrence,  and  make  settlements  on  that  river.  It 
was  under  these  authorizations  to  De  Monts  exclu- 
sively, that  all  the  permanent  settlements  of  the 


1 The  story  is  told  by  Lescarbot  (p.  38,  ed.  1609),  which  he  subsequently 
embellished  with  some  fabulous  additions  in  relation  to  a visit  to  the 
island  of  Sable  by  Baron  de  Leri,  in  1519  (Ed.  1611,  p.  22),  even  before  the 
date  of  the  Verrazzano  letter. 

2 Lescarbot  (ed.  1609),  462-3.  ' La  Cadie,  or  Acadie,  as  it  was  for  a long 
time  afterwards  known,  appears  for  the  first  time  on  any  chart  on  the  map 
of  Terra  Nova,  No.  56,  in  Gastaldi’s  Ptolemy,  and  is  there  called  Lacadia. 


NO  DISCOVERY  MADE  FOR  FRANCIS  I. 


41 


French  in  Nova  Scotia  and  Canada  were  effected,  be- 
yond which  countries  none  were  ever  attempted  by 
them,  within  the  limits  of  the  Yerrazzano  discovery, 
or  any  rights  asserted  on  behalf  of  the  French  crown. 

It  is  thus  evident  that  the  history  of  France  and  of 
her  kings  is  utterly  void  on  the  subject  of  this  dis- 
covery, without  any  legitimate  cause,  if  it  had  ever 
taken  place ; and  that  the  policy  of  the  crown  in  re- 
gard to  colonization  in  America  has  ever  been  entirely 
in  repugnance  to  it.  It  is  incredible,  therefore,  that 
any  such  could  ever  have  taken  place  for  Francis,  or 
for  France. 

An  important  piepe  of  testimony  of  an  affirmative 
character,  however,  still  exists,  showing  that  the 
crown  of  France  had  no  knowledge  or  appreciation  of 
this  claim.  It  comes  from  France,  and,  as  it  were, 
from  Francis  himself.  It  is  to  be  found  in  the  work 
of  a French  cartographer,  a large  and  elaborately  exe- 
cuted map  of  the  world,  which  has  been  reproduced 
by  M.  Jomard,  in  his  Monuments  of  Geography , under 
the  title  of  Mapyemonde  peinte  sur  parchemin  par  ordre 
de  Henry  If  roi  de  France } M.  D’Avezac  assigns  it 
the  date  of  1542,  which  is  five  years  before  the  death 
of  Francis  and  accession  of  Henry  to  the  throne.1 2 * * * 6  But 
neither  of  these  dates  appears  to  be  exactly  correct ; 
as  upon  that  portion  of  the  map  representing  Saguenay, 
the  person  of  Roberval  is  depicted  and  his  name  in- 

1 Les  Monuments  de  la  Geographie  ouReceuil  d'anciennes  cartes , &c.,  en  fac- 
simile de  la  grandeur  des  originaux.  Par  M.  Jomard.  No.  xix. 

2 Inventatre  et  classement  raisonne  $es  “ Monuments  de  la  Geographic  ” pub- 

lies  par  M.  Jomard  de  1842  d 1862.  ( Communication  de  M.  B'Avezac.)  Ex- 

trait du  Bulletin  de  VAcademie  des  inscriptions  et  belles  lettres.  Seance  du  30 

Aout  1867,  p.  7.  j UAnnee  Geographique.  Sixieme  annee  (1867),  pp.  543, 554. 

6 


42 


VERRAZZANO. 


scribed,  evidently  denoting  his  visit  to  that  country, 
which  did  not  take  place  until  June,  1543.1  No  in- 
formation, could  possibly  have  arrived  in  France,  to 
have  enabled  the  maker  of  the  map,  to  have  indicated 
this  circumstance  upon  it  before  the  latter  part  of 
that  year.  On  the  other  hand  the  arms  of  both  the 
king  and  dauphin  are  repeatedly  drawn  in  the  deco- 
rated border  of  the  map,  showing  that  it  was  made,  if 
not  under  the  actual  direction  of  Henry,  at  least  while 
he  was  in  fact  discharging  the  functions  of  admiral  of 
France,  which  he  assumed  after  the  disgrace  of  Chabot, 
in  1540,  and  continued  to  exercise  until  the  death  of 
Francis,  in  1547.  It  therefore  belongs  to  the  period 
of  1543-7 ; and  thus  comes  to  us  apparently  impressed 
with  an  official  character.  It  is  the  work  of  an  accom- 
plished French  geographer,  during  the  reign  of  Francis , 
and  it,  no  doubt,  represents  not  only  the  state  of  geo- 
graphical knowledge  in  France  at  that  time,  but  also  all 
the  knowledge  possessed  by  Francis  of  this  coast.  Mr. 
Kohl  expresses  the  opinion  that  it  “ is  not  only  one  of 
the  most  brilliant,  but  also  one  of  the  most  $xact  and 
trustworthy  pictures  of  the  world  which  we  have  in 
the  first  part  of  the  sixteenth  century.  It  gives 
accurately  all  that  was  known  of  the  world  in  1543, 
especially  of  the  ocean,  and  the  outlines  of  the  coasts 
of  different  countries.”  He  adds,  “ the  author  of  the 
map  must  have  been  a well  instructed,  intelligent  and 
conscientious  man.  Where  the  coasts  of  a country  are 
not  known  to  him,  he  so  designates  them.  For  his 
representations  of  countries  recently  discovered  and 


Hakluyt,  hi,  242. 


NO  DISCOVERY  MADE  FOR  FRANCIS  I. 


43 


already  known,  he  had  before  him  the  best  models  and 

originals.”1  Yet  notwithstanding  the  thorough  know- 

§ 

ledge  of  the  subject  displayed  by  this  cartographer,  his 
French  nationality,  and  the  contemporariness  of  his 
labors  with  the  reign  of  Francis,  “ no  evidence,”  as 
Mr.  K.  further  observes,  “ appears  that  the  report  or 
chart  of  the  French  commander,  Ye rrazzano,  had  been 
used  in  constructing  this  chart.”  On  the  contrary,  the 
line  of  coast  from  Cape  St.  Roman  in  South  Carolina 
to  Cape  Breton  is  copied  from  the  Spanish  map  of 
Ribero,  with  the  Spanish  names  translated  into  French.2 
Many  other  names  occur  within  the  same  distance, 
which  are  found  on  other  Spanish  charts  since  that 
time,  and  some  which  were  probably  taken  from  Spanish 
charts  not  now  known.3  Thus  within  the  limits  men- 
tioned, embracing  the  exploration  of  Gomez  no  designa- 
tion occurs  connecting  the  coast  with  Verrazzano.4 
From  Cape  Breton  easterly  and  northerly  along  the 
coast  of  Newfoundland  the  discoveries  of  the  Normand 

and  Bretons  and  the  Portuguese,  and  in  the  river  and 
*• 

1 Discovery  of  Maine , 351-4. 

2 Thus  R.  del  principe,  R.  del  espiritu  santo,  B.  de  Santa  Maria  (the 
Chesapeake)  Playa,  C.  de  S.  Juan,  R.  de  St.  iago,  C.  de  Arenas  (Cape  Hen- 
lopen),  B.  de  S.  Christoval  (the  Delaware),  B.  de  S.  Antonio  (the  Hudson), 
R.  de  buena  Madre,  S.  Juan  Baptista,  Arcipelago  de  Estevan  Gomez* 
Montanas,  and  R1  de  la  buelta,  on  the  map  of  Ribero,  become  on  the 
French  map,  R.  du  Prince,  R.  du  St.  Esprit,  B.  de  Sa.  Marie,  Les  playnes, 
C.  St.  Jean,  St.  Jacques,  C.  des  Sablons,  G.  de  St.  Christofle,  R.  de  St. 
Anthoinq,  R.  de  bonne  Mere,  Baye  de  St.  Jean  Baptiste,  Arcipel  de 
Estienne  Gomez,  Les  Montaignes  and  R.  de  Volte. 

3 Of  this  class  are  the  R.  de  Canoes,  R.  Seche,  Playne,  Coste  de  Dieu,  R. 
d’Arbres,  which,  on  the  map  xii,  of  the  Munich  Atlas,  said  to  have  been 
taken  from  the  map  of  the  Spanish  cosmographer,  Alonzo  de  Santa  Cruz, 
are  given,  R.  de  Canoas,  R.  Seco,  Terra  liana,  Costa  de  Diego,  R.  d 
Arvoredos. 

4 The  name  of  Avorobagra,  on  the  west  side  of  the  great  bay,  is  found 
in  place  of  C.  de  Muchas  illas  of  the  Ribero  map.  This  is  supposed  to 
have  been  intended  for  Norumbega. 


44 


VERRAZZANO. 


gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  those  of  Jacques  Cartier,  are 
shown  by  the  names.  The  whole  coast  claimed  by  the 
letter  is  thus  assigned  to  other  parties  than  Ver- 
razzano.  The  logical  maxim,  expressio  unius  est  exclusio 
alterius , must  here  apply.  The  expression  of  the 
Spani»h  discoveries,  at  least  exclude  those  of  Ver- 
razzano;  demonstrating  almost  to  a moral  certainty 
that  the  latter  could  never  have  been  performed  for 
the  king  of  France.  The  author  of  this  map,  whether 
executing  it  under  official  responsibility  or  upon  his 
own  account,  would  not  have  ascribed,  or  dared  to 
ascribe,  to  a foreign  nation,  much  less  to  a rival,  the 
glory  which  belonged  to  his  own  sovereign,  then  living, 
whose  protection  he  enjoyed. 


ARMS  OF  THE  DAUPHIN,  AFTERWARDS  HENRY  H. 
From  the  Mappemonde  published  by  M.  Jomard. 


COAST  GEOGRAPHY  MISREPRESENTED. 


45 


IY. 

II.  Misrepresentations  in  regard  to  the  Geography  of 

the  Coast.  The  Chesapeake.  The  Island  of  Louise. 

•Massachusetts  Bay. 

In  pursuing  its  main  object' of  making  known  the 
discovery,  the  letter  ventures  upon  certain  statements 
which  are  utterly  inconsistent  with  an  actual  explora- 
tion of  the  country.  The  general  position  and  direc- 
tion of  the  coast  are  given  with  sufficient  correctness 
to  indicate  the  presence  there  of  a navigator ; but 
its  geographical  features  are  so  meagrely  and  untruth- 
fully represented,  as  to  prove  that  he  could  not  have 
been  the  writer.  The  same  apparent  inconsistency 
exists  as  to  the  natural  history  of  the  country.  Some 
details  are  given  in  regard  to  the  natives,  which  cor- 
respond with  their  known  characteristics,  but  others 
are  flagrantly  false.  The  account  is  evidently  the  work 
of  a person  who,  with  an  imperfect  outline  of  the  coast, 
by  another  hand,  before  him,  undertook  to  describe  its 
hydrographical  character  at  a venture,  so  far  as  he 
deemed  it  prudent  to  say  anything  on  the  subject ; 
and  to  give  the  natural  history  of  the  country,  in  the 
same  way,  founded  on  other  accounts  of  parts  of  the 
new  world.  The  actual  falsity  of  the  statements  al- 
luded to  is,  at  all  events,  sufficient  to  justify  the  rejec- 
tion of  the  whole  story.  So  far  as  they  relate  to  the 
littoral,  they  are  now  to  be  considered. 


46 


VERRAZZANO. 


In  general,  the  geography  of  the  coast  is  very 
indefinitely  described.  Of  its  latitudes,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  landfall  and  termination  of  the  explora- 
tion, which  are  fixed  also  by  other  means,  and  are 
necessary  to  the  ground  work  of  the  story,  only  a 
single  one  is  mentioned.  The  particular  features  of 
the  coast  are  for  the  most  part  unnoticed.  Long 
distances,  embracing  from  two  hundred  to  six  hundred 
miles  each,  are  passed  over  with  little  or  no  remark. 
Islands,  rivers,  capes,  bays,  and  other  land  or  seamarks, 
by  which  navigators  usually  describe  their  progress 
along  an  unknown  coast,  are  almost  entirely  unmen- 
tioned. For  a distance  of  over  two  thousand  miles, 
adopting  the  narrowest  limits  possible  assigned  to  the 
discovery,  only  one  island,  one  river,  and  one  bay  are 
attempted  to  be  described,  and  not  a single  cape  or 
headland  is  referred  to.  No  name  is  given  to  any  of 
them,  or  to  any  part  of  the  coast,  except  the  one  island 
which  is  named  after  the  kings  mother.  It  was  the 
uniform  practice  of  the  Catholic  navigators  of  that  early 
period,  among  whom,  according  to  the  import  of  the 
letter,  Verrazzano  was  one,  to  designate  the  places 
discovered  by  them,  by  the  names  of  the  saints  whose 
feasts  were  observed  on  the  days  they  were  discovered, 
or  of  the  festivals  of  the  church  celebrated  on  those 
days;  so  that,  says  Oviedo,  it  is  possible  to  trace  the 
course  'of  any  such  explorer  along  a new  coast  by 
means  of  the  church  calendar.  This  * custom  was 
not  peculiar  to  the  countrymen  of  that  historian.  It 
was  observed  by  the  Portuguese  and  also  by  the  French, 
as  the  accounts  of  the  voyages  of  J acques  Cartier  attest. 
But  nothing  of  the  kind  appears  here.  These  omis- 


COAST  GEOGRAPHY  MISREPRESENTED.  47 

sions  of  the  ordinary  and  accustomed  practices  of  voy- 
agers are  suspicious,  and  of  themselves  sufficient  t6 
destroy  all  confidence  in  the  narrative.  But  to  proceed 
to  what  is  actually  stated  in  regard  to  the  coast. 

Taking  the  landfall  to  have  occurred,  as  is  distinctly 
claimed,  at  latitude  34°,  which  is  a few  leagues  north 
of  Cape  Fear  in  North  Carolina,  and  which  is  fixed 
with  certainty,  for  the  purposes  of  the  letter,  at  that 
point  by  the  estimate  of  the  distance  they  ran  north- 
erly along  the  coast  before  it  took  an  easterly  direction, 
the  discovery  must  be  regarded  as  having  commenced 
somewhat  south  of  Cape  Roman  in  South  Carolina, 
being  the  point  where  the  fifty  leagues  terminated 
which  they  ran  along  the  coast,  in  the  first  instance, 
south  of  the  landfall.  It  is  declared  that  from  thence, 
for  two  hundred  leagues,  to  the  Hudson  river,  as  it 
will  appear,  there  was  not  a single  harbor  in  which 
the  Dauphine  could  ride  in  safety.1  The  size  of  this 
craft  is  not  mentioned,  but  it  is  said  she  carried  only 
fifty  men,  though  manned  as  a corsair.  Judging  from 
the  size  of  the  vessels  used  at  that  time  on  similar 
expeditions,  she  was  small.  The  two  which  composed 
the  first  expedition  of  Jacques  Cartier  carried  sixty 
men  and  were  each  of  about  sixty  tons  burden. 
The  Carli  letter,  which  must  be  assumed  to  express 
the  idea  of  the  writer  on  the  subject,  describes  her  as 
a caravel;  which  was  a vessel  of  light  draught  adapted 
to  enter  shallow  rivers  and  harbors  and  to  double  un- 
known capes  where  shoals  might  have  formed,  and 
was  therefore  much  used  by  the  early  navigators  of  the 

1 A league,  according  to  the  Verrazzano  letter,  consisted  of  four  miles ; 
and  a degree,  of  15.625  leagues  or  62£  miles. 


48 


VERRAZZANO. 


new  world.1  Columbus  chose  two  caravels,  out  of  the 
three  vessels  with  which  he  made  his  first  voyage ; and 
the  third  one,  which  was  larger  than  either  of  the  cara- 
vels, was  less  than  one  hundred  tons.  The  Dauphine  is 
therefore  to  be  considered,  from  all  the  representations 
in  regard  to  her,  of  less  than  the  latter  capacity,  and 
as  specially  adapted  to  the  kind  of  service  in  which 
she  is  alleged  to  have  been  engaged.  In  funning  north 
from  their  extreme  southerly  limit,  they  must  have 
passed  the  harbor  of  Georgetown  in  South  Carolina, 
and  Beaufort  in  North  Carolina,  in  either  of  which 
the  vessel  could  have  entered,  and  in  the  latter,  carry- 
ing seventeen  feet  at  low  water  and  obtaining  perfect 
shelter  from  all  winds.2  But  if  they*  really  had  been 
unable  to  find  either  of  them,  it  is  impossible  that  they 
should  not  have  discovered  the  Chesapeake,  and 
entered  it,  under  the  alleged  circumstances  of  their 
search.  That  it  may  be  seen  what  exactly  is  the 
statement  of  the  letter  in  regard  to  this  portion  of  the 
coast,  it  is  here  given  in  its  own  terms.  Having  re- 
presented the  explorers  as  having  reached  a point 
fifty  leagues  north  of  the  landfall,  ’which  would  have 
carried  them  north  of  Hatteras,  but  still  on  the  coast 
of  North  Carolina,  their  movements  over  the  next 
four  hundred  miles  north  are  disposed  of  in  the  follow- 
ing summary  manner:  “ After  having  remained  here,” 
(that  is,  at  or  near  Albemarle,)  “ three  days  riding  at 
anchor  on  the  coast,  as  we  could  find  no  harbor,  we 
determined  to  depart  and  coast  along  the  shore  to  the 

1 Le  Moyen  Age  etla  Renaissance.  Tome  Second.  Maxim,  par  M A. 
Jal.  fol.  y.  (Paris  1849.) 

2 Blunt’s  American  Coast  Pilot , p.  359  (19th  edition.) 


COAST  GEOGRAPHY  MISREPRESENTED. 


49 


northeast,  keeping  sail  on  the  vessel  only  by  day , and 
coming  to  anchor  by  night.  After  proceeding  one 
hundred  leagues  we  found  a very  pleasant  situation 
among  some  steep  hills , through  which  a very  large  river , 
deep  at  its  mouth,  forced  its  way  to  the  sea There  can 
be  no  mistake  in  regard  to  the  portion  of  the  coast 
here  intended.  Upon  leaving  this  river  they  found 
that  the  coast  stretched,  it  is  stated,  as  will  presently 
appear,  in  an  easterly  direction.  A stream  coming 
from  the  hills,  its  situation  at  the  bend  of  the  coast, 
its  latitude  as  fixed  by  that  of  the  port  which,  after 
leaving  it,  they  found  in  nearly  the  same  parallel  and 
which  is  placed  in  41°  40',  all  point  distinctly  to  the 
embouchure  of  the  Hudson  at  the  highlands  of  Nave- 
sink  as  the  termination  of  the  hundred  leagues.  With- 
in this  distance  the  Chesapeake  empties  into  the  sea. 

The  explorers  were  not  only  in  search. of  a harbor 
for  the  purpose  of  recruiting,  but  they  were  seeking, 
as  the  great  end  of  the  voyage,  a passage  to  Cathay, 
rendering,'  therefore,  every  opening  in  the  coast  an 
object  of  peculiar  interest  and  importance.  They  were 
sailing  with  extreme  caution  and  observation,  in  the 
day-time  only,  and  constantly  in  sight  of  land.  The 
bay  of  the  Chesapeake  is  the  most  accessible  and  capa- 
cious on  the  coast  of  the  United  States.  It  presents  an 
opening  into  the  sea  of  twelve  miles  from  cape  to  cape, 
having  a broad  and  deep  channel  through  which  the 
largest  ships  of  modern  times,  twenty  times  or  more 
the  tonnage  of  the  Dauphiny,  may  enter  and  find  inside 
of  Cape  Henry  ample  and  safe  anchorage.1  That  an 
actual  explorer  could  not  have  failed  to  have  discovered 

1 Blunt’s  American  Coast  Pilot , p.  340. 


50 


YERRAZZANO. 


this  bay  and  four*}  a secure  harbor  at  that  time,  is 
shown  by  the-  account  of  the  expedition,  which  the 
Adelantado,  Pedro  Menendez,  of  infamous  memory, 
despatched  under  the  command  of  Pedro  Menendez 
Marquez,  for  the  survey  of  this  coast  in  1573;  when 
the  means  and  facilities  of  navigators  for  exploration 
were  not  different  from  what  existed  at  the  date  of  the 
Yerrazzano  voyage.  Menendez  Marquez  was  the  first 
' to  enter  the  Chesapeake  after  Gomez,  who  gave  it  the 
name  of  the  hay  of  Santa  Maria.1  Barcia  thus  sum- 
marizes the  result  of  the  expedition,  so  far  as  it  relates 
to  this  bay. 

<£  Pedro  Menendez  Marquez,  governor  of  Florida  for  his  uncle  the 
Adelantado  reduced  many  Indians  to  obedience  and  took  possession 
of  the  provinces  particularly  in  the  name  of  the  king,  in  the  pres- 
ence of  Rodrigo  de  Carrion,  notary  of  the  government  of  Santa  Elena. 
Afterwards,  he,  being  a great  seaman,  inasmuch  as  he  had  formerly 
been  admiral  of  the  fleet,  as  Francisco  Cano  relates,  Lib.  3,  de  la 
Histor.  de  las  Or  denes  Militares,  fol.  184,  went,  by  order  of  the 
Aaelantado,  to  explore  the  coast,  which  exploration  commenced  at 
the  cape  of  the  Martyrs,  and  the  peninsula  Tequesta  [point  of 
Florida],  where  the  coast  begins  to  run  north  and  south,  at  the  out- 
let of  the  Bahama  channel,  and  extended  along  the  coast  to  beyond 
the  harbor  and  bay  of  Santa  Maria,  which  is  three  leagues  wide  and 
which  is  entered  towards  the  northwest;  and  within  it  are  many 
rivers  and  harbors  where,  on  both  sides  of  it,  they  can  anchor.  At 
the  entrance,  near  the  shore,  on  the  south,  there  are  from  nine  to 
thirteen  fathoms  of  water,  and  on  the  north  from  five  to  seven.  Two 
leagues  outside,  in  the  sea,  the  depth  is  the  same,  north  and  south, 
but  more  sandy  than  inside.  Going  through  the  channel  there  are 
from  nine  to  thirteen  fathoms ; and  in  the  harbor  about  fifteen,  ten 
and  six  fathoms  were  found  in  places  where  the  lead  was  thrown.” 
“ The  bay  of  Santa  Maria  is  in  thirty-seven  degrees  and  a half.2” 


1 This  name  occurs  on  the  map  of  Ribero  on  this  part  of  the  coast, 
which  establishes  its  application  by  Gomez ; but  its  position  is  evidently 
misplaced  and  carried  too  far  south. 

2 Ensayo  Chronologico,  pp.  146,  8.  • 


COAST  GEOGRAPHY  MISREPRESENTED. 


51 


To  ignore  the  existence  of  this  great  bay,  the  most 
important  hydrographical  feature  of  our  coast,  as 
Verrazzano,  according  to  the  letter,  does,  and  to  pre- 
tend that  no  harbor  could  be  found  there,  in  which  the 
diminutive  Dauphiny  could  lie,  is,  under  the  circum- 
stances under  which  this  exploration  is  alleged  to 
have  been  conducted,  to  admit  that  he  was  never  on 
that  part  of  the  coast. 

Suddenly  leaving  the  river  of  the  hills,  in  conse- 
quence of  an  approaching  storm,  they  continued  their 
course  directly  east  for  a distance  of  ninety-five  leagues, 
passing  in  sight  of  the  island  and  arriving  finally  at 
the  bay,  which  are  the  only  ones  described,  and  that 
very  briefly,  in  the  whole  voyage  along  the  coast. 

“ Weighing  anchor,”  reads  the  letter,  “ we  sailed  eighty  leagues 
towards  the  east,  as  the  coast  stretched  in  that  direction,  and  always 
in  sight  of  it.  At  length  we  discovered  an  island  of  triangular 
form,  about  ten  leagues  from  the  main  land,  in  size  about  equal  to 
the  island  of  Rhodes,  having  many  hills  covered  with  trees  and  well 
peof led,  judging  from  the  great  number  of  fires  which  we  saw  all 
around  its  shores;  we  gave  it  the  name  of  your  majesty’s  illustrious 
mother.  We  did  not  land  there , as  the  weather  was  unfavorable,  but 
proceeded  to  another  place,  fifteen  leagues  distant  from  the  island, 
where  we  found  a very  excellent  harbor.  * * * This  land  is  situated 
in  the  parallel  of  Rome,  being  41°  40'  of  north  latitude.  It  looks 
towards  the  south,  on  which  side  the  harbor  is  half  a league  broad ; 
afterwards,  upon  entering  it  between  the  east  and  the  north  it  ex- 
tends twelve  leagues,1  and  then  enlarging  itself  it  forms  a very  large 
bay,  twenty  leagues  in  circumference,  in  which  are  five  small  islands 
of  great  fertility  and  beauty,  covered  with  large  and  lofty  trees. 
Among  these  islands  any  fleet,  however  large,  might  ride  safely, 
without  fear  of  tempests  or  other  dangers.  Turning  towards  the 

1 A slight  correction  of  the  translation  of  Dr.  Cogswell,  which  is  the  one 
we  have  adopted,  here  becomes  necessary.  It  reads : “ upon  entering  it 
the  extent  between  the  east  (misprinted  coast),  and  north  is  twelve 
leagues.”  The  text  is,  “ entrando  in  quelle  infra  oriente  e settentrione 
s’estende  leghe  XII.” 


52 


VERRAZZANO. 


south,  at  the  entrance  of  the  harbor  on  both  sides  there  are  very- 
pleasant  hills  and  many  streams  of  clear  water  which  flow  down  to 
the  sea.  In  the  midst  of  the  entrance,  there  is  a rock  of  freestone, 
formed  by  nature  and  suitable  for  the  construction  of  any  kind  of 
machine  or  bulwark  for  the  defence  of  the  harbor.” 

This  island  is  a mere  fancy ; none  such  exists  any 
where  upon  this  coast.  The  distance  which  they  thus 
ran  easterly,  of  eighty  leagues,  would  have  carried 
them  more  than  an  hundred  miles  into  the  ocean 
beyond  Cape  Cod.  That  distance,  however,  may  be 
regarded  only  as  approximate,  because  they  possessed 
no  means  of  determining  longitude  with  accuracy,  and 
therefore  this,  like  all  statements  in  the  letter,  of 
distances  running  east  and  west,  is  to  be  considered 
an  estimate  only,  formed  from  the  circumstances  at- 
tending the  sailing  of  the  vessel,  and  liable  to  serious 
error.  But  the  island  and  bay  were  objects  of  actual 
observation,  and  are  therefore  to  be  regarded  as  they 
are  described.  After  leaving  Long  Island,  which  forms 
thQ  coast  in  an  easterly  direction  for  a little  over  an 
hundred  miles  from  the  Hudson,  only  three  islands 
occur,  except  some  insignificant  ones  and  the  group  of 
the  Elizabeth  islands  all  near  the  shore,  in  the  entire 
distance  to  the  easterly  shore  of  Cape  Cod,  when  the 
coast  turns  directly  north.  They  are  all  three'  some- 
what of  a triangular  shape,  and  in  that  respect  are 
equally  entitled  to  consideration  in  connection  with 
the  description  of  the  island  of  Louise,  but  are  all  in- 
compatible with  it  in  other  particulars.  Louise  is 
represented  as  being  a very  large  island,  equal  in  size 
to  the  famous  island  of  Bhodes,  which  has  an  area  of 
four  hundred  square  miles,  and  as  being  situated  ten 
leagues  distant  from  the  main  land.  The  first  of  the 


COAST  GEOGRAPHY  MISREPRESENTED. 


53 


three  islands  met  with,  eastward  of  Long  Island,  is 
Block  island.  It  contains  less  than  twenty  square  miles 
of  territory  and  lies  only  three  leagues  from  the  land; 
and  thus  both  by  its  smallness  and  position  cannot  be 
taken  as  the  island  of  Louise.  It  has,  however,' 
been  so  regarded  by  some  writers,  because  on  the  main 
land,  about  five  leagues  distant,  are  found  Narragan- 
set  bay  and  the  harbor  of  Newport,  which,  it  is  im- 
agined, bear  some  resemblance  to  the  bay  and  harbor 
which  the  explorers  entered  fifteen  leagues  beyond  the 
island  of  Louise,  and  which  cannot  be  elsewhere  found. 

But  Narraganset  bay  does  not  correspond  in  any 
particular  with  the  bay  described  in  the  letter,  except 
as  to  its  southern  exposure  and  its  latitude,  and  as  to 
them  it  has  no  more  claim  to  consideration  than  Buz- 
zard’s bay,  three  leagues  further  east,  and  in  other 
respects  not  so  much.  Newport  harbor,  several  miles 
inside  of  Narraganset  bay,  faces  the  north  and  west, 
and  not  the  south.  The  whole  length  of  that  bay, 
including  the  harbor  of  Newport  from  the  ocean  to 
Providence  river,  is  less  than  five  leagues,  and  its 
greatest  breadth  not  more  than  three.  But  the  harbor 
described  in  the  letter  first  as  extending  twelve  leagues 
and  then  enlarging  itself,  formed  a large  bay  of  twenty 
leagues  in  circumference.  The  two,  it  is  clear,  are  essen- 
tially unlike.  The  great  rock  rising  out  of  the  sea  at  the 
entrance  of  the  harbor,  has  no  existence  in  this  bay  or 
harbor.  Narraganset  bay,  therefore,  affords  no  support 
to  the  idea  that  Block  island,  or  any  other,  is  the  island 
of  Louise.  Martha’s  Vineyard,  the  second  of  the  three 
islands  before  mentioned,  is  the  largest  of  them,  but  it 
contains  only  one  hundred  and  twenty  square  miles  of 


54 


VERRAZZANO. 


land,  and  is  within  two  leagues  of  the  main  land, 
Nantucket,  the  last  of  the  three,  is  less  than  half  the 
size  of  Martha’s  Vineyard,  and  is  about  thirty  miles 
from  Cape  Cod,  the  nearest  part  of  the  continent.  From 
neither  of  them  is  any  harbor  to  be  reached  corre- 
sponding with  that  mentioned  in  the  letter.  It  is  in- 
controvertible, therefore,  that  there  is  neither  island 
nor  bay  on  this  coast  answering  the  description.  It  is 
not  difficult  to  perceive  that  the  island  of  Louise  was 
a mere  invention  and  artifice  on  the  part  of  the  writer 
to  give  consistency  to  the  pretension  that  the  voyage 
originated  with  Francis.  This  island  is  jlie  only  one 
of  which  particular  mention  is  made  in  the  whole  ex- 
ploration. Yet  it  was  not  visited  or  seen  except,. in 
sailing  by  it,  at  a distance.  Its  pretended  hills  and 
trees  disclosed  nothing  of  its  character ; and,  under 
such  circumstances,  its  alleged  dimensions  were  all  that 
could  have  entitled  it  to  such  particular  notice  and 
made  it  worthy  of  so  exalted  a designation ; and  to 
those  no  island  on  this  coast  has  any  claim. 

There  is  little  room  to  doubt  from  the  description 
itself,  and  the  fact  will  be  confirmed  by  other  evidence 
hereafter,  that  the  bay  intended  to  be  described  was 
the  great  bay  of  Massachusetts  and  Maine  terminat- 
ing in  the  bay  of  Fundy.  It  is  represented  as  making 
an  offset  in  the  coast  of  twelve  leagues  towards  the 
north,  and  then  swelling  into  an  enclosed  bay  beyond, 
of  twenty  leagues  in  circumference,  indicating  those 
bays,  in  their  form.  The  distances,  it  is  true,  do  not 
‘conform  to  those  belonging  to  that  part  of  the  coast ; 
but  it  is  to  be  borne  in  mind  that  they  may  have  been 
taken,  according  to  the  only  view  which  can  reconcile 


COAST  GEOGRAPHY  MISREPRESENTED. 


55 


the  contradictions  of  the  letter,  from  an  imperfect  de- 
lineation of  the  coast  by  another  hand.  The  identity 
of  the  two  is,  however,  proven,  without  recourse  to 
this  explanation,  by  the  description  of  the  coast  beyond, 
which  is  given  as  follows : 

“ Having  supplied  ourselves  with  every  thing  necessary,  we  de- 
parted, on  the  sixth1  of  May,  from  this  port  [where  they  had  re- 
mained fifteen  days]  and  sailed  one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues , keep- 
ing so  near  to  the  coast  as  never  to  lose  it  from  our  sight ; the  nature 
of  the  country  appeared  much  the  same  as  before,  but  the  mountains 
were  a little  higher  and  all  in  appearance  rich  in  minerals.  We  did 
not  stop  to  land,  as  the  weather  was  very  favorable  for  pursuing  our 
voyage,  and  the  country  presented  no  variety.  The  shore  stitched 
to  the  east , and  fifty  leagues  beyond  more  to  the  north,  where  we 
found  a more  elevated  country  full  of  very  thick  woods  of  fir  trees, 
^ cypresses  and  the  like,  indicative  of  a cold  climate.  The  people 
were  entirely  different  from  the  others  we  had  seen,  whom  we  had 
found  kind  and  gentle,  but  these  were  so  rude  and  barbarous  that 
we  were  unable  by  any  signs  we  could  make  to  hold  communication 
with  them.” 

This  is  all  that  is  mentioned  in  regard  to  the  entire 
coast  of  New  England  and  Nova  Scotia,  embracing  a 
distance  of  eight  hundred  miles  according  to  this  com- 
putation, but  in  fact  much  more.  It  is  here  stated, 
however,  distinctly,  that  from  the  time  of  leaving  the 
harbor,  near  the  island  of  Louise,  they  kept  close  to 
the  land,  which  ran  in  an  easterly  direction,  and  con- 
stantly in' sight  of  it,  for  one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues. 
This  they  could  not  have  done  if  that  harbor 
were  on  any  part  of  the  coast,  west  of  Massachusetts 
bay.  If  they  sailed  from  Narraganset  bay,  or  Buz- 
zard’s bay,  or  from  any  harbor  on  that  coast,  east  of 
Long  Island,  they  would  in  the  course  of  twenty 

1 According  to  the  Archivio  Storico  Italiano,  and  not  the  fifth,  as  given 
in  N.  7.  Hist.  Coll. 


56 


VERRAZZANO. 


leagues  at  the  furthest,  in  an  easterly  direction,  have 
reached  the  easterly  extremity  of  the  peninsula  of 
Cape  Cod,  and  keeping  close  to  the  shore  would  have 
been  forced  for  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles,  in  a north- 
erly and  west  of  north  direction,  and  thence  along  the 
coast  of  Maine  northeasterly  a further  distance  of  one 
hundred  and  fifty  miles,  and  been  finally  locked  in  the 
bay  of  Fundy.  It  is  only  by  running  from  Cape  Sable 
along  the  shores  of  Nova  Scotia  that  this  course  and 
distance,  in  sight  of  the  land,  can  be  reconciled  with 
the  actual  direction  of  the  coast ; and  this  makes  the 
opeifing  between  Cape  Cod  and  Cape  Sable  the  large 
bay  intended  in  the  letter.  But  this  opening  of  eighty 
leagues  in  width,  could  never  have  been  seen  by  the  ^ 
writer  of  it ; and  nothing  could  more  conclusively 
prove  his  ignorance  of  the  coast,  than  his  statements 
that  from  the  river  among  the  hills,  for  the  distance 
of  ninety-five  leagues  easterly  to  the  harbor  in  41°40' 
N.  and  from  thence  for  a further  distance  of  one 
hundred  and  fifty  leagues,  also  easterly , the  land  was 
always  in  sight. 


CAPE  HENRY  AND  ENTRANCE  INTO  THE  CHESAPEAKE. 

Lighthouse,  with  lantern  129  leet  above  the  sea,  bearing  W.  N.  W.  V%  W.,  three 
leagues  distant. 


PRIOR  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NORTHERN  COAST.  57 


Y. 

III.  Cape  Breton  and  the  Southerly  Coast  of  New- 
foundland, HERE  CLAIMED  TO  HAVE  BEEN  DISCOVERED, 
WERE  KNOWN  PREVIOUSLY.  PERVERSION  OF  THE  TEXT  OF 

the  Letter  by  Bamusio. 

By  the  two  courses  and  distances  last  mentioned, 
the  explorers  are  brought  first  to  the  island  of  Cape 
Breton,  and  then  to  the  cape  of  that  name,  where 
the  coast  first  takes  a decided  turn,  from  its  easterly 
direction,  to  the  north,  and  forms  the  westerly  side  of 
the*  strait  leading  into  the  gulf  of  St.  Lawrence.  This 
cape,  according  to  the  letter,  is  distant  easterly  one 
hundred  and  fifty,  and  fifty,  leagues  from  the  harbor 
in  the  great  bay,  distances  which,  for  reasons  already 
mentioned,  are  to  be  regarded  as  estimates  only,  but 
which  taken  exactly  would  have  carried  them  beyond 
Cape  Race  in  Newfoundland.  They  are  to  be  con- 
sidered, however,  as  properly  limited  to  the  turn  of 
the  coast  before  mentioned,  as  that  is  a governing  cir- 
cumstance in  the  description.  Beyond  this  point, 
north,  and  east,  the  letter  presents  the  claim  to  the 
discovery  in  another  aspect.  Thus  far  it  relates  to 
portions  of  the  coast  confessedly  unknown  before  its 
date.  But  from  Cape  Breton,  in  latitude  46°  N.  to 
latitude  50°  N.  on  the  east  side  of  Newfoundland,  it 
pretends  to  the  discovery  of  parts,  which  were  in 
8 


58 


VERRAZZANO. 


fact  already  known ; and  it  makes  this  claim  under 
circumstances  which  prove  it  was  so  known  by  the 
writer,  if  the  letter  were  written  as  pretended.  Having 
described  their  attempts  at  intercourse  with  the  natives 
at  Cape  Breton,  the  narrative  concludes  the  descrip- 
tion of  the  coast  with  the  following  paragraph. 

“ Departing  from  thence,  we  kept  along  the  coast,  steering  north- 
east, and  found  the  country  more  pleasant  and  open,  free  from  woods, 
and  distant  in  the  interior,  we  «aw  lofty  mountains  but  none  which 
extended  to  the  shore.  Within  fifty  leagues  we  discovered  thirty- 
two  islands,  all  near  the  main  land,  small  and  of  pleasant  appearance, 
hut  high  and  so  disposed  as  to  afford  excellent  harbors  and  channels, 
as  we  see  in  the  Adriatic  gulf,  near  Illyria  and  Dalmatia.  We  had 
no  intercourse  with  the  people,  but  we  judge  that  they  were  similar 
in  nature  and  usages  to  those  we  were  last  among.  After  sailing  be- 
tween east  and  north  one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues  more , and  find- 
ing our  provisions  and  naval  stores  nearly  exhausted,  we  took  in 
wood  and  water,  and  determined  to  return  to  France,  having  dis- 
covered favendo  discopertoi)  VII,1  that  is,  700  leagues  of  unknown 
lands.” 

• The  exact  point  at  which  they  left  the  coast,  and 
to  which  their  discovery  is  thus  stated  to  have  ex- 
tended, is  given  in  the  cosmography  which  follows  the 
narrative,  in  these  words  : 

“ In  the  voyage  which  we  have  made  by  order  of  your  majesty,  in 
addition  to  the  92  degrees  we  ran  towards  the  west  from  our  point 
of  departure  (the  Desertas)  before  we  reached  land  in  the  latitude 
of  34,  we  have  to  count  300  leagues  which  we  r$n  northeastwardly, 
and  400  nearly  east  along  the  coast  before  we  reached  the  50 th 
parallel  of  north  latitude , the  point  where  we  turned  our  course 
from  the  shore  towards  home.  Beyond  this  point  the  Portuguese  had 
already  sailed  as  far  as  the  Arctic  Circle , without  coming  to  the  ter- 
mination of  the  land .” 

1 “ The  MS.  has  erroneously  and  uselessly  the  repetition  VII,  that  is,  700 
leagues.”  Note,  by  M.  Arcangeli.  It  is  evident  that  VII  is  mistakenly 
rendered  502  in  the  transcription  used  by  Dr;  Cogswell. 


PRIOR  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NORTHERN  COAST.  59 

That  this  latitude  must  be  taken  as  correctly  deter- 
mined follows  from  the  representation  of  the  letter, 
that  they  took  daily  observations  of  the  sun  and  made 
a record  of  them,  so  that  no  material  error  could  have 
occurred  and  remained  unrectified  for  over  twenty-* 
four  hours ; and  from  the  presumption  that  they  were 
as  capable  of  calculating  the  latitude  as  other  navi- 
gators of  that  period,  sent  on  such  purposes  by  royal 
authority,  like  Jacques  Cartier,  whose  observations,  as 
the  accounts  of  his  voyage  to  this  region  show,  never 
varied  half  a degree  from  the  true  latitude.  The 
fiftieth  parallel  strikes  the  easterly  coast  of  Newfound- 
land threfc  degrees  north  of  Cape  Race,  and  to  that 
point  the  exploration  ofVerrazzano  is  therefore  to  be 
regarded  as  claimed  to  have  been  made.1 

This  intention  is  made  positively  certain  by  the  re- 
mark which  follows  the  statement  of  the  latitude,  that 
beyond  this  point  the  Portuguese  had  already  sailed 
as  far  north  as  the  Artie  circle  without  coming  to  the  . 
termination  of  the  land.”  The  exploration  of  the 
Portuguese  here  referred  to,  and  as  far  as  which  that  of 
Verrazzano  is  carried,  was  made  by  Gaspar  Cortereal  in 
his  second  voyage,  when  according  to  the  letter  of 
Pasqualigo  the  Venetian  embassador,  he  sailed  from 
Lisbon  on  a course  between  west  and  northwest,  and 
struck  a-coast  along  which  he  ran  from  six  to  seven  hun- 
dred miles,  “without  finding  the  end.”2  No  other  ex- 
ploration along  this  coast  by  the  Portuguese,  tending  to 

1 Damiam  de  Goes,  Chronica  do  felicissimo  rei  Bom  Emanuel  parte  i. 
c.  66.  (Fol.,  Lisboa,  1566.) 

2 Paesi  nommente  ritrovati.  Lib.  sexto,  cap.  cxxxi.  Venice,  1521.  A 
translation  into  English  of  Pasqualigo’s  letter,  which  is  dated  the  19th  of 
October,  1501,  is  given  in  the  memoir  of  Sebastian  Cabot,  p.  235-6. 


60 


VERRAZZANO. 


the  Arctic  circle  is  known  to  have  taken  place  before  the 
publication  of  the  Verrazzano  letter.  The  first  voyage 
of  Cortereal,  was,  according  to  the  description  of  the 
people  given  by  Damiam  de  Goes,  among  the  Esqui- 
maux, whether  on  the  one  side  or  the  other  of  Davis 
straits  it  is  unnecessary  here  to  inquire,  as  the  Esqui- 
maux are  not  found  south  of  50°  N.  latitude.  The  land 
along  which  he  ran  in  his  second  voyage,  was,  accord- 
ing to  the  same  historian,  distinctly  named  after  him 
and  his  brother,  'who  shared  his  fate  in  a subsequent 
voyage.  It  is  so  called  on  several  early  printed  maps 
on  which  it  is  represented  as  identical  with  Newfound- 
land. It  appears  first  on  a map  of  the  world  in  the 
Ptolemy  of  1511  edited  by  Bernardus  Sylvanusof  Eboli, 
and  is  there  laid  down  as  extending  from  latitude  50° 
N.  to  60°  N.  with  the  name  of  Corte  Real  or  Court 
Royal,  latinized  into  Regalis  Domus.1  The  length  of 
the  coast,  corresponds  with  the  description  of  Pasqua- 
ligo,  and  its  position  with  the  latitude  assigned  by  the 
Verrazzano  letter  for  their  exploration.  Its  direction 
is  north  and  south.  There  can  be  no  question  there- 
fore as  to  the  pretension  of  the  Verrhzzano  letter  to 
the  discovery  of  the  coast  by  him,  actually  as  far  north 
as  the  fiftieth  parallel. 

That  it  is  utterly  unfounded,  so  far  as  regards  that 
portion  of  the  coast  lying  east  and  north  of  Cape  Bre- 
ton, that  is,  from  46°  N.  latitude  to  50°  N.,  embrac- 
ing a distance  of  five  hundred  miles  according  to 
actual  measurement,  or  eight  hundred  miles  according 


1 Qlaudii  Ptholemaei  Alexandrini  liber  geographiae,  cum  tabulis  et  unwer- 
salifigura  et  cum  additione  locorum  quae  arecentioribusreperta  sunt  diligenti 
cura  emendatuset  impressus.  (Fol.,  Venetiis,  1511.) 


PRIOR  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NORTHERN  COAST.  61 

to  the  letter,  is  proven  by  the  fact,  that  it  had  all  been 
known  and  frequented  by  Portuguese  and  French  fish- 
ermen, for  a period  of  twenty  years  preceding  the 
Yerrazzano  voyage.  The  Portuguese  fisheries  in  New- 
foundland must  have  commenced  shortly  after  the 
voyages  of  the  brothers  Cortereaes  in  1501-2,  as  they 
appear  to  have  been  carried  on  in  1506,  from  a decree 
of  the  king  of  Portugal  published  at  Leiria  on  the  14th 
of  October  in  that  year,  directing  his  officers  to*collect 
tithes  of  fish  which  should  be  brought  info  his  kingdom 
from  Terra  Nova  and  Portuguese  charts  belonging  to 
that  period,  still  extant,  show  both  the  Portuguese  and 
French  discoveries  of  this  coast.  On  a map  (No.  1,  of 
the  Munich  atlas,)  of  Pedro  Reinel,  a Portuguese  pilot, 
who  entered  the  service  of  the  king  of  Spain  at  the 
time  of  fitting  out  Magellan's  famous  expedition,  Terra 
Nova,  and  the  land  of  Cape  Breton  are  correctly  laid 
down,  as  regards  latitude,  though  not  by  name.  On 
T$rra  Nova  the  name  of  C.  Raso,  (preserved  in  the 
modern  Cape  Race)  is  applied  to  its  southeasterly 
point,  and  other  Portuguese  names,  several  of  which 
also  still  remain,  designating  different  points  along  the 
easterly  coast  of  Newfoundland,  and  a Portuguese  ban- 
ner, as  an  emblem  of  its  discovery  by  that  nation,  are 
fQund.  Another  Portuguese  chart,  belonging  to  the 
period  when  the  country  between  Florida  and  Terra 
Nova  was  unknown  (No.  4 of  the  same  atlas)  deline- 
ates the  land  of  Cape  Breton,  not  then  yet  known  to 
be  an  island,  in  correct  relation  with  the  Bacalaos, 
accompanied  by . a legend  that  it  was  discovered  by 

1 Memorias  Economicas  da  academia  Beal  das  Sciencias  de  Lisboa , tom. 
m,  393.  • 


62 


VERRAZZANO. 


the  Bretons.1  The  French  authorities  are  more  ex- 
plicit. The  particular  parts  of  this  coast  discovered 
by  the  Normands  and  Bretons  .with  the  time  of  their 
discovery,  and  by  the  Portuguese,  are  described  in  the 
discourse  of  the  French  captain  of  Dieppe,  which  is 
found  in  the  collection  of  Ramusio.  This  writer  states 
that  this  land  from  Cape  Breton  to  Cape  Race  was 
discovered  by  the  Bretons  and  Normands  in  1504,  and 
from  Cape  Race  to  Cape  Bonavista,  seventy  leagues 
north,  by  the  Portuguese,  and  from  thence  to  the 
straits  of  Belle  Isle  by  the  Bretons  and  Normands;  and 
that  the  country  was  visited  in  1508  by  a vessel  from 
Dieppe,  commanded  by  Thomas  Aubert,  who  brought 
back  to  France  some  of  the  natives:  This  statement 

in  regard  to  the  Indians  is  confirmed  by  an  account 
of  them,  which  is  given  in  a work,  printed  in  Paris  at 
the  time,  establishing  the  fact  of  the  actual  presence 
of  the  Normands  in  Newfoundland  in  that  year,  by 

contemporaneous  testimony  of  undoubted  authority.2 

• 

1 Atlas  zur  entdeckungsgeschichte  Amerikas.  Herausgegeben  von  Friedrich 
Kunstmann,  Karl  von  Spruner , Georg  M.  Thomas.  Zu  den  Monumenta 
Scpcularia  der  K.  B.  Akademie  der  Wissenschaften , 28  Maerz , 1859.  Munchen . 

2 Easebii  Ghronicon , continued  by  Joannes  Multivallis  of  Louvain,  (Paris 
1512)  fol.  172. 

We  give  here,  a translation  of  the  interesting  passage  referred  to  in  the 
text,  from  this  volume,  which  came  from  the  celebrated  press  of  Henri 
Estienne. 

“ An  Salutis,  1509.  Seven  savages  were  brought  to  Rouen  with  their 
garments  and  weapons  from  the  island  they  call  Terra  Nova.  They  are 
of  a dark  complexion,  have  thick  lips  and  wear  marks  on  their*  faces  ex- 
tending along  their  jaws,  from  the  ear  to  the  middle  of  the  chin  like  small 
livid  veins.  Their  hair  is  black  and  coarse  like  a horse’s  mane.  They 
have  no  beard,  during  their  lives,  or  hairs  of  puberty.  Nor  have  they  hair 
on  any  part  of  their  persons,  except  the  head  and  eye-brows.  They  wear 
a girdle  on  which  is  a small  skin  to  cover  their  nakedness.  They  form 
their  speech  with  their  lips.  No  religion.  Their  boat  is  of  bark  and  a 
man  may  carry  it  with  one  hand  on  his  shoulders.  Their  weapons  are 
bows  drawn  with  a string  made  of  the  intestines  or  sinews  of  animals,  and 


PRIOR  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NORTHERN  COAST.  63 

That  the  French  and  especially  the  Normands  had 
soon  afterwards  resorted  to  Newfoundland  for  the 
purpose  of  taking  fish,  and  were  actually  so  engaged 
there  at  the  time  of  the  Yerrazzano  voyage,  is  evident 
from  the  letter  of  John  Rut,  who  commanded  one  of  the 
ships  sent  out  on  a voyage  of  discovery  by  Henry  VIII 
of  England  in  1527.  That  voyager  states  that,  driven 
from  the  north  by  the  ice,  he  arrived  at  St.  Johns  in 
Newfoundland  on  the  third  of  August  in  that  year, 
and  found  there  eleven  Normand,  one  Breton  and  two 
Portuguese  vessels,  u all  a fishing.” 1 This  was  at  a 
single  point  on  the  coast,  and  in  latitude  47°  30'  N. ; 
and  so  large  a number  of  vessels  there  denotes  a growth 
of  many  years,  at  that  time,  of  those  fisheries. 

arrows  pointed  with  stone  or  fisli-hone.  Their  food  consists  of  roasted 
flesh,  their  drink  is  water.  Bread,  wine  and  the  use  of  money  they  have 
none.  They  go  about  naked  or  dressed  in  the  skins  of  bears,  deer,  seals 
and  similar  animals.  Their  country  is  in  the  parallel  of  the  seventh  cli- 
mate, more  under  the  west  than  France  is  above  the  west.  ” Plus  sub 
occidente  quam  Gallica  regio  supra  occidentem . By  “ west  ” here  is  meant  the 
meridional  line,  from  which  longitude  was  calculated  at  that  time,  through 
the  Island  of  Ferro,  the  most  westerly  of  the  Canary'islands,  and  the  idea 
here  intended  to  be  conveyed  is  that  the  ‘ country  of  these  Indians  was 
further  on  this  side  than  France  was  on  the  other  side,  of  that  line. 

This  description,  as  well  as  the  name,  Terra  Nova,  indicates  the  region 
of  Newfoundland  as  the  place  from  whence  these  Indians  were  taken. 
According  to  the  tables  of  Pierre  d’Ailly  the  seventh  climate  commences  at 
47°  15'  N.  and  extends  to  50°  30'  N.  beginning  where  the  longest  day  of 
the  year  is  15  hours  and  45  minutes  long.  ( Imago  Mundi,  tables  prefixed 
to  the  first  chapter.)  This  embraces  the  greater  part  of  the  southerly  and 
easterly  coasts  of  Newfoundland.  The  practice  of  tattooing  their  faces  in 
lines  across  the  jaws,  as  here  described,  was  common  to  all  the  tribes  of 
this  northern  coast,  the  Nasquapees  of  Labrador,  the  red  Indians  of  New- 
foundland and  the  Micmacs.  of  Gape  Breton  and  Nova  Scotia.  It  was 
from  the  use  of  red  ochre  for  this  purpose  that  the  natives  of  Newfound- 
land obtained  their  designation  of  red  Indians.  The  Micmacs  used  blue 
and  other  colors  ; hence  it  would  appear  from  the  circumstance  of  the 
marks  upon  these  Indians  being  livid  (lividce)  or  blue,  like  veins,  that  they 
belonged  to  the  tribes  of  Cape  Breton.  (Hind’s  Labrador  ii,  97-110. 
Purchas,  m.  1880-1.  Denys.  {Hist.  nat.  de  VAmerique  Sept,  n,  387.) 

1 Purchas,  in,  809.  Memoir  of  Sebastian  Cabot , pp.  108,  268,  and  the 
authorities  there  cited. 


64 


VERRAZZANO. 


These  facts  not  only  prove  that  Newfoundland  and 
Cape  Breton  were  well  known  in  France  and  Portugal 
before  the  Verrazzano  voyage  and  therefore  that  he 
did  not  discover  them,  but  that  he  must  have  known 
of  them  before,  and  that  the  letter  is  intentionally 
false  in  that  respect.  It  might  perhaps  be  insisted 
with  some  plausibility  under  other  circumstances,  that 
he  ran  along  the  coast,  believing  that  it  was  a new 
land,  and  therefore  made  the  representation  of  having 
discovered  it  in  good  faith.  But  admitting  that  it  was 
even  possible  for  him  to  have  sailed  along  those  shores 
without  encountering  a single  fishing  craft  which 
would  have  assured  him  that  he  was ‘not  in  unknown 
waters,  it  is  impossible  that  he  could  have  sailed  from 
Dieppe  and  returned  to  that  port  where,  of  all  the 
places  in  France  or  Europe,  the  knowledge  of  these 
facts  most  existed,  and  where  they  were  as  familiar  as 
household  words,  and  where  they  must  have  entered 
into  the  thoughts  and  hopes  of  many  of  its  inhabit- 
ants, without  their  being  known  to  him  ; and  that  he 
could  have  written  the  letter  from  that  same  port, 
claiming  the  discovery  of  the  country  for  himself,  with- 
out intending  a fraud.  It  w*as  the  port  to  which 
Aubert  belonged  and  where  he  landed  the  Indians  he 
brought  from  Newfoundland.  It  was  the  principal 
port  of  Normandy  from  which  the  fishing  vessels  made 
their  annual  voyages  to  that  country.  It  was  the  port 
from  whence  he  manned  and  equipped  his  own  fleet 
of  four  ships,  with  crews  which  must  have  been  largely 
composed  of  Normand  sailors  who  were  familiar  with 
the  navigation  and  the  coast.  And  there  was  not  a 
citizen  of  Dieppe,  probably,  who  had  not  an  interest 


PRIOR  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NORTHERN  COAST.  65 

of  some  nature  in  one  or  more  of  the  fishing  vessels, 
and  could  have  told  him  what  country  it  was  that  he 
had  explored. 

It  bears  unequivocal  testimony  to  the  fictitious 
character  of  this  claim,  that  Ramusio  thought  it 
necessary  to  interpolate  in  his  version  a passage  repre- 
senting the  discovery  of  Verrazzano  as  terminating 
where  the  discoveries  of  the  Bretons  began,  and  to  omit 
the  cosmography  which  states  it  was  at  the  point 
where  those  of  the  Portuguese  towards  the  Arctic  cir- 
cle commenced.  By  this  alteration  the  letter  is  made 
to  acknowledge  the  prior  discoveries  by  the  Bretons, 
which  are  entirely  excluded  in  the  original  version,  and 
to  adopt  the  latitude  of  50°  N.  for  the  Yerrazzano  limit 
thus  making  the  false  statement,  as  to  the  extent  of  the 
discovery,  a mistake  as  it  were  of  nautical  observation. 
The  following  parallel  passages  in  two  versions  will 
best  explain  the  character  and  effect  of  the  alteration. 

VERSION  OF  CARLI,  VERSION  OF  RAMUSIO, 

Narrative.  Narrative. 

Navicando  infra  ’1  subsolano  ed  Navigando  fra  levante  & tra- 
aquilone  in  spatio  di  leghe  CL  et  montana  per  spatio  di  leghe  150, 
de  gi£t  avendo  consumato  tutte  le  pervenimo  propinqui  alia  terra 
nostre  substantie  navale  e vettova-  che  per  il  passato  irovorono  i 
glie,  avendo  discopruto  leghe  DII  Brettoni , quale  sta  in  gradi  50  & 
cive  leghe  700,  piu  di  nuova  terra  havedo  horamai  consumati  tutti 
fornendoci  di  acque  et  legue  de-  li  nostri  armeggi  & vettovaglie, 
liberammo  di  tornare  in  Francia.  havendo  scoperto  leghe  700,  & 
******  pm  di  nnova  terra,  fortinoei  di 

acque  & legue,  deliberammo 
. tornare  in  Francia. 

Cosmography.  Cosmography  omitted. 

In  questa  nostra  navigatione 
fatta  per  ordine  di  V.  S.  M., 
oltre  i gradi  92  che  dal  detto 
9 


66 


VERRAZZANO. 


meridiano  verso  lo  occidente  della 
prima  terra  trovamo  gradi  34 
navigando  leghe  300  infra  oriente 
e settentrione  leghe  400,  quasi  alio 
oriente  continuo  el  lito  della  terra 
siamo  pervenuti  per  infino  a gradi 
50,  lasciando  la  terra  che  pift 
tempo  fa  trovorno  li  Lusitani, 
quali  seguirno  piu  al ' septentri- 
one,  pervenendo  sino  al  circulo 
artico  e 'lfine  lasciendo  incognito. 

Translation  Narrative. 

After  sailing  between  east  and 
north  the  distance  of  one  hundred 
and  fifty  leagues  more  and  find- 
ing our  provisions  and  naval 
stores  nearly  exhausted,  we  took 
in  wood  and  water,  and  deter- 
mined to  return  to  France  hav- 
ing discovered  VII  that  is  700 
leagues  of  unknown  lands. 

5fc  5)<  5}«  Sfc  >i« 


Cosmography . 

In  the  voyage  which  we  made 
by  order  of  your  Majesty,  in  ad- 
dition to  the  92  degrees  we  ran 
towards  the  west  from  our  point 
of  departure,  before  we  reached 
land  in  the  latitude  of  34,  we 
have  to  count  300  leagues  which 
we  ran  northeastwardly,  and  400 
nearly  east  along  the  coast  before 
we  reached  the  50  th  'parallel  of 
north  latitude , the  point  where  we 
turned  our  course  from  the  shore 
towards  home.  Beyond  this  point 
the  Portuguese  had  already  sailed 


Translation  Narrative. 

Sayling  northeast  for  the  space 
of  150  leagues  we  approached  to 
the  lande  that  in  times  past  was 
discovered  by  the  Britons , which  is 
in  fiftie  degrees.  Having  now 
spent  all  our  provision  and 
victuals  and  having  discovered 
about  700  leagues  and  more  of 
newe  countries,  and  being  fur- 
nished with  water  and  wood  we 
concluded  to  returne  into  Fraunce. 

(Hakluyt.  Divers  voyages.') 

* * * * * * 


PRIOR  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NORTHERN  COAST.  67 

as  far  north  as  the  Arctic  circle , 
without  coming  to  the  termination 
of  the  land. 

(Cogswell.  Coll,  of  N.  Y Hist. 

Society , Second  series,  I.) 

Ramusio  in  omitting  the  cosmography  and  confin- 
ing his  version  to  the  narrative  would  have  left  the 
letter  without  any  designation  of  the  northerly  limit 
reached  by  Verrazzano,  had  he  not  transferred  to  the 
narrative,  the  statement  of  the  latitude  attained, 
namely,  the  fiftieth  degree,  from  the  cosmographical 
part ; which  was  therefore  properly  done,  though  as 
an  editor  he  should  have  stated  the  fact.  But  he 
transcended  his  duty  entirely  in  asserting,  in  qualifica- 
tion of  the  latitude,  what  does  not  appear  in  the  letter, 
that  it  was  near  where  the  Bretons  had  formerly  made 
discoveries,  and  omitting  all  reference  to  the  Portu- 
guese. The  Bretons  are  not  mentioned  or  even  alluded 
to  in  either  portion  of  the  original  letter.  The  effect 
of  this  substitution  therefore  is  to  relieve  the  original 
from  making  a false  claim  to  the  discovery  north  of 
Cape  Breton,  by  admitting  the  discoveries  of  the  Bre- 
tons, and  making  the  alleged  extent  of  the  Yerrazzano 
discovery,  as  already  remarked,  a mistake  of  nautical 
observation  only.  That  it  was  deliberately  made, 
and  for  that  purpose,  is  shown  by  his  taking  the  desig- 
nation of  the  latitude  from  the  same  sentence  in  the 
cosmography  as  that  in  which  the  mention  of  the 
Portuguese  discoveries  occurs,  in  qualification  of  the 
latitude. 

The  motive  which  led  Ramusio  to  make  this  altera- 
tion is  found  in  the  discourse  of  the  French  captain  of 
Dieppe,  in  which  it  is  stated  that  this  part  of  the 


68 


VERRAZZANO. 


coast  was  discovered  by  the  Normands  and  Bretons 
and  the  Portuguese,  many  years  before  the  Yerrazzano 
voyage.  Ramusio,  as  he  informs  us  himself,  trans- 
lated that  paper  from  the  French  into  the  Italian 
and  published  it  in  the  same  volume,  in  conjunction 
with  the  Yerrazzano  letter,  which  he  remodelled.  He 
thus  had  the  contents  of  both  documents  before  him, 
at  the  same  time,  and  saw  the  contradiction  between 
them.  They  could  not  both  be  true.  To  reconcile 
them,  alterations  were  necessary ; and  this  change  was 
made  in  the  letter  in  order  to  make  it  conform  to 
the  discourse.  The  fact  of  his  making  it,  proves  that 
he  regarded  the  letter  as  advancing  an  indefensible 
claim. 

It  is  also  to  be  observed  that  in  adopting  the  fiftieth 
parallel  as  the  extent  of  the  discovery  in  the  north, 
Ramusio  obtained  the  statement  from  the  cosmography, 
showing  that  he  had  that  portion  of  the  letter  before 
him ; and  confirming  the  conclusion,  expressed  in  a 
previous  section,  that  his  version  was  composed*  from 
the  Carli  copy  of  the  letter,  in  which  alone  the  cos- 
mography occurs.  Whether  this  limit  was  so  trans- 
posed by  him  for  a purpose  or  not,  ‘may  be  a question ; 
but  the  origin  of  it  cannot  be  disputed. 


ARTIFICIAL  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  69 


VI. 

♦ 

IV.  The  Description  oe  the  People  and  Productions 
of  the  Land  not  made  from  the  Personal  Observa- 
tion of  the  Writer  of  the  Letter.  What  distinctively 

BELONGED  TO  THE  NATIVES  IS  UNNOTICED,  AND  WHAT  IS 
ORIGINALLY  MENTIONED  OF  THEM  IS  UNTRUE.  FURTHER 

important  Alterations  of  the  Text  by  Ramusio. 

We  are  brought  now  to  the  observations  in  refer- 
ence to  the  people  and  productions  of  the  country. 
The  communications  which  the  explorers  had  with  the 
shore  are  not  represented  as  having  been  numerous, 
or  their  visits  of  long  duration,  the  longest  having 
been  one  of  three  days,  while  they  were  riding  at 
anchor  off  the  coast  of  North  Carolina,  and  another 
of  fifteen,  spent  in  replenishing  the  supplies  for  their 
ship,  in  the  harbor  in  the  great  bay  of  Massachusetts. 
These  opportunities  were  however,  it  seems,  sufficient 
to  have  enabled  them  to  study  the  characteristics  of 
the  natives  and  to  determine  the  nature  of  the  vegeta- 
tion at  those  places ; but  the  description  given  of  both 
is  very  general.  Not  a single  person,  sagamore  or 
warrior,  or  even  the  boy  who  was  carried  away  to 
France,  is  designated  by  name,  nor  any  object  pecu- 
liar to  the  region  by  its  native  appellation.  Not  an 
Indian  .word,  by  which  a locality  or  a tribe  might  be 
traced,  occurs  in  the  whole  narrative.  Some  familiar 
details  are  mentioned  of  Indian  manners  and  customs, 
which  give  the  account  the  appearance  of  truth,  but 


70 


VERRAZZANO. 


there  is  nothing  in  them  which  may  not  have  been 
deduced  from  known  narratives  of  earlier  voyages 
to  adjoining  parts  of  America;  while  much  that  was 
peculiar  to  the  country  claimed  to  have  been  dis- 
covered, and  of  a character  to  compel  observation,  is 
omitted ; and  some  particulars  stated  which  could  not 
have  existed. 

In  its  incidents  of  Indian  life  it  recalls  the  experi- 
ences of  Columbus.  When  the  great  discoverer  first 
came  to  the  island  of  Hispaniola  it  is  related,  “ they 
saw  certaine  men  of  the  Islande  who  perceiving  an 
unknowen  native  comming  toward  them,  flocked 
together  and  ran  into  the  thicke  woodes,  as  it  had  bin 
hares  coursed  with  greyhoundes.  Our  men  pursuing 
them  took  only  one  woman,  whom  they  brought  to  the 
ships,  where  filling  her  with  meate  and  wine,  and  appar- 
relling  her,  they  let  her  depart  to  her  companie.”  Also, 
“ their  boates  are  made  only  of  one  tree  made  hollow 
with  a certain  sharpe  stone,  for  they  have  no  yron,  and 
are  very  long  and  narrow.”  And  again,  “ when  our 
men  went  to  prayer,  and  kneeled  on  their  knees,  after 
the  manner  of  the  Christians,  they  did  the  like  also.  And 
after  what  manner  soever  they  saw  them  pray  to  the 
crosse,  they  followed  them  in  all  poyntes  as . well  as 
they  could.”  1 The  Yerrazzano  letter  tells  us,  in  like 
phrase,  that  when  they  landed  at  the  end  of  fifty 
leagues  from  the  landfall,  “ we  found  that  the  people 
had  fled  to  the  woods  for  fear.  By  searching  around  we 
discovered  in  the  grass  a very  old  woman  and  a young 
girl  of  about  eighteen  or  twenty,  who  had  concealed 
themselves  for  the  same  reason.  We  gave  them  a 


Peter  Martyr,  Dec.  1. 1.  in  Eden. 


artificial  description  of  the  country.  71 

part  of  our  provisions,  which  they  accepted  with 
delight,  but  the  girl  would  not  touch  any.”  At  the 
same  place,  it  is  added,  “ we  saw  many  of  their  boats 
made  of  one  tree,  without  the  aid  of  stone  or  iron  or 
other  kind  of  metal.”  And  to  make  the  parallel  com- 
plete, the  letter  asserts  of  the  natives,  “they  are  very 
easy  to  be  persuaded  and  imitated  us  with  earnestness 
and  fervor  in  all  which  they  saw  us  do  as  Christians 
in  our  acts  of  worship.”  While  they  were  taking 
in  their  supplies  and  interchanging  civilities  with  the 
. Indians  in  the  harbor  of  the  great  bay,  the  following 
scene  of  royalty  is  described  as  having  occurred.  “ One 
of  the  two  kings  often  came  with  his  queen  and  many 
gentleman  (< gentili  uomini ) to  see  us  for  his  amuse- 
ment, but  he  always  stopped  at  the  distance  of  about 
two  hundred  paces,  and  sent  a boat  to  inform  us  of  his 
intended  visit,  saying  they  would  come  and  see  our 
ship.  This  was  done  for  safety,  and  as  soon  as  they 
had  an  answer  from  us,  they  came  off  and  remained 
awhile  to  look  around ; but  on  hearing  the  annoying 
cries  of  the  sailors,  the  king  sent  the  queen  with  her 
maids  (demizelle)  in  a very  light  boat  to  wait  near  an 
island,  a quarter  of  a league  distant  from  us  while  he 
remained  a long  time  on  board  ” This  hyperbolical 
description  of  the  visit  of  the  sachem  of  Cape  Cod  ac- 
companied by  the  gentlemen  of  his  household  and  of 
his  squaw  queen  with  her  maids  of  honor,  has  its  pro- 
totype in  the  visit  paid  to  Bartholomew  Columbus, 
during  the  absence  of  his  brother,  the  admiral,  by 
Bechechio  the  king  or  cacique  of  Xaragua  and  his 
sister,  the  queen  dowager,  Anacoana,  who  are  repre- 
sented as  going  to  the  ship  of  the  Adelantado  in  two 


72. 


VERRAZZANO. 


canoes,  “ one  for  himself  and  certayne  of  his  -gentle- 
men, another  for  Anacoana  and  her  waiting  women.” 
The  astonishment  which  the  natives  manifested  at  the 
appearance  of  the  Dauphiny  and  her  crew ; their  ad- 
miration of  the  simple  toys  and  little  bells  which 
were  offered  them  by  the  strangers ; their  practice  of 
painting  their  bodies,  adorning  the.mselveswith  the  gay 
plumage  of  birds,  and  habiting  themselves  with  the 
skins  of  animals,  seem  all  analogized,  in  the  same  way, 
from  the  accounts  given  by  Peter  Martyr  of  the  in- 
habitants of  the  islands  discovered  by  Columbus,  and  of 
the  northern  regions  by  Sebastian  Cabot.  These 
traits  of  Indian  life  and  character,  therefore,  not  hav- 
ing, been  peculiar  to  the  natives  of  the  country  de- 
scribed in  the  letter,  and  having  been  already  men- 
tioned in  earlier  accounts  of  the  adjoining  parts  of 
America,  the  description  of  them  here  furnishes  no 
proof  of  originality  or  of  the  truth  of  the  letter  for 
that  reason. 

On  the  other  hand  objects  which  historically  belong 
to  the  inhabitants  of  the  places  declared  to  have  been 
visited,  and  characterize  them  distinctly  from  those 
previously  discovered,  and  which  were  of  such  a marked 
character  as  to  have  commanded  attention,  are  not 
mentioned  at  all.  Of  this  class  perhaps  the  most  pro- 
minent is  the  wampum,  a commodity  of  such  value  and 
use  among  them  that,  like  gold  among  the  Europeans, 
it  served  the  double  purpose  of  money  and  personal 
adornment.  The  region  of  the  harbor  where  the 
voyagers  spent,  according  to  the  letter,  fifteen  days  in 
familiar  intercourse  with  the  inhabitants,  was  its 
greatest  mart,  from  which  it  was  spread  among  the 


ARTIFICIAL  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  73 

tribes,  both  north  and  east.  Wood,  describing  the 
Narragansets  in  1634,,  says  they  u are  the  most  curious 
minters  of  the  wampompeage  and  mowhakes  which 
they  forme  out  of  the  inmost  wreaths  of  periwinkle 
shels.  The  northerne,  easterne,  and  westerne  Indians 
fetch  all  their  coyne  from  these  southern  mint-masters. 
From  hence  they  have  most  of  their  curious  pendants 
and  bracelets  ; hence  they  have  their  great  stone  pipes 
which  will  hold  a quarter  of  an  ounce  of  tobacco.” 
And  in  regard  to  their  practice  of  ornamentation,  he 
remarks  again  : “ although  they  be  poore,  yet  is  there 
in  them  the  sparkes  of  naturall  pride  which  appeares  in 
their  longing  desire  after  many  kinde  of  ornaments, 
wearing  pendants  in  their  eares,  as  formes  of  birds, 
beasts  and  fishes,  carved  out  of  bone,  shels,  and  stone, 
with  long  bracelets  of  their  curious  wrought  wam- 
pompeage and  mowhackees  which  they  put  about 
their  necks  and  loynes  ; which  they  count  a rare  kinde 
of  decking.”  The  same  writer  adds  a description  of 
an  Indian  king  of  this  country  in  his  attire,  which  is 
somewhat  less  fanciful  than  that  in  the  letter.  “ A 
sagamore  with  a humberd  (humming-bird)  in  his  eare 
for  a pendant,  a blackhawke  in  his  occiput  for  his 
plume,  mowhackees  for  his  gold  chaine,  good  store  of 
wa^pompeage  begirting  his  loynes,  his  bow  in  his 
hand,  his  quiver  at  his  back,  with  six  naked  Indian 
spatterlashes  at  his  heeles  for  his  guard,  thinkes  him- 
selfe  little  inferiour  to  the  great  Cham.”  1 Roger 
Williams  confirms  this  account  of  the  importance  of 
the  wampurfi  among  thesp  same  Indians.  u They 
hang,”  he  states  “ these  strings  of  money  about  their 

1 New  England  Prospect , pp.  61,  65-6. 

10 


74 


VERRAZZANO. 


necks  and  wrists,  as  also  about  the  necks  and  wrists 
of  their  wives  and  children.  Machequoce,  a girdle, 
which  they  make  curiously  of  one,  two,  three,  four 
and  five  inches  thickness  and  more,  of  this  money, 
which  sometimes  to  the  value  of  tenpounds  and  more, 
they  weare  about  their  middle,  and  a scarfe  about 
their  shoulders  and  breasts. 

The  Indians  prize  not  English  gold, 

Nor  English,  Indians  shell : 

Each  in  his  place  will  passe  for  ought, 

• What  ere  men  buy  or  sell.” 1 

Another  important  article  in  universal  use  among 
the  Indians  of  the  main  land,  north  and  south,  was 
the  tobacco*  pipe.  Tobacco  was  used  by  the  natives 
of  the  West  India  islands,  made  up  in  rolls  or  cigars ; 
but  by  the  Indians  of  the  continent  it  was  broken  up, 
carried  in  small  bags  attached  to  a girdle  round  the  body, 
and  smoked  through  clay,  stone  or  copper  pipes,  some- 
•times  of  very  elaborate  workmanship.  Smoking  the 
pipe  was  of  universal  use  among  them,  both  on  ordi- 
nary and  extraordinary  occasions.  It  was  a tender 
of  hospitality  to  strangers ; and  a sign  of  peace  and 
friendship  between  the  nations.2  When  Captain  Way- 
mouth.  ran  along  the  coast  of  the  great  bay  of  Massa- 
chusetts, in  1605,  he  repeatedly  encountered  this  cus- 
tom. On  one  occasion  the  natives  came  from  the 
shore  in  three  canoes,  and  Rosier  remarks  of  them  : 
“ they  came  directly  aboord  us  and  brought  us  tobacco, 
which  we  tooke  with  them  in  their  pipe  which  was 

1 Key  into  the  Language  of  America,  pp.  149-50. 

a For  a ful\  and  interesting  account  of  the  importance  of  the  tobacco- 
pipe  among  the  Indians  of  North  America,  upon  cited  authorities,  we 
refer  the  reader  to  Antiquities  of  the  Southern  Indians.  By  Charles  C. 
Jones  Jr.,  p.  382.  (New  York,  1873.) 


ARTIFICIAL  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  75 

made  of  earth  very  strong,  but  blacke  and  short,  con- 
taining a great  quantity.  When  we  came  at  shoare 
they  all  most  kindely  entertained  us,  taking  us  by  the 
hands,  as  they  had  observed  we  did  to  themaboord  in 
token  of  welcome,  and  brought  us  to  sit  downeby  their 
fire,  where  sat  together  thirteene  of  them.  They 
filled  their  tobacco  pipe,  which  was  then  the  short 
claw  of  a lobster,  which  will  hold  ten  of  our  pipes  full 
and  we  dranke  of  their  excellent  tobacco,  as  much  as 
we  would  with  them.” 1 No  notice  is  taken  of  this 
custom,  either  of  tobacco  or  the  pipe  in  the  Verrazzano 
letter. 

The  most  remarkable  omission  of  all  is  of  the  bark 
canoe.  This  light  and  beautiful  fabric  was  peculiar 
to  the  Algonkin  tribes.  It  was  not  found  among  the 
southern  Indians?  much  less  in  the  West  India  islands. 
Its  buoyancy  and  the  beauty  of  its  form  were  such 
as  to  render  it  an  object  of  particular  observation. 
Though  so  light  as  to  be  capable  of  being  borne  on  a 
man’s  shoulders,  it  would  sometimes  carry  nine  men, 
and  ride  with  safety  over  the  most  stormy  sea.  It 
was  always  from  the  first  a great  object  of  interest 
with  the  discoverers  of  the  northerly  parts  of  the 
coast,  which  they  manifested  by  taking  them  back  to 
Europe,  as  curiosities.  Aubert  carried  one  of  them  to 
Dieppe  in  1508,  and  Captain  Martin  Pringe,  who  was 
one  of  the  first  to  visit  the  shores  of  Cape  Cod,  took 
one,  in  1603,  thence  to  Bristol,  which  he  thus  de- 
scribes, as  if  he  saw  no  other  kind. 

“ Their  boats  whereof  we  brought  one  to  Bristoll,  were  in  propor- 
tion like  a wherrie  of  the  river  of  Thames,  seventeene  foot  long  and 


1 Purchas,  rv.  1662. 


76 


VERRAZZANO. 


foure  foot  broad,  made  of  the  barke  of  a birch  tree,  farre  exceeding 
in  bignesse  those  of  England  : it  was  sowed  together  with  strong  and 
tough  oziers  or  twigs,  and  the  seames  covered  over  with  rozen  or 
turpentine  little  inferiour  in  sweetnesse  to  frankincense,  as  we  made 
triall  by  burning  a little  thereof  on  the  coales  at  sundry  times  after 
our  comming  home  : it  was  also  open  like  a wherrie,  and  sharpe  at 
both  ends,  saving  that  the  beake  was  a little  bending  roundly  upward. 
And  though  it  carried  nine  men  standing  upright,  yet  it  weighed 
not  at  the  most,  above  sixtie  pounds  in  weight,  a thing  almost  in- 
credible in  regard  of  the  largeness  and  capacitie  thereof.  Their  oares 
were  flat  at  the  end  like  an  oven  peele,  made  of  ash  or  maple,  very  light 
and  strong,  about  two  yards  long  wherewith  they  row  very  swiftly.”1 

The  silence  of  the  letter  in  regard  to  this  species  of 
the  canoe  is  the  more  remarkable,  as  it  is  in  connec- 
tion with  the  natives  of  the  harbor  where  they  spent 
fifteen  days,  that  mention  is  made  in  it  a second  time 
of  the  manner  of  making  their  boats  out  of  single  logs, 
as  if  it  were  a subject  of  importance,  and  worthy  of  re- 
mark. The  inference  is  most  strongly  to  be  drawn 
therefore,  from  this  circumstance,  that  the  writer  knew 
nothing  about  the  bark  canoe,  or  the  people  who  used 
them. 

The  absence  of  all  allusion  to  any  of  the* peculiar 
attributes,  especially  of  the  essential  character  just  de- 
scribed, of  the  natives  of  the  great  bay  leads  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  whole , account  is  a fabrication. 
But  this  end  is  absolutely  reached  by  the  positive 
statement  of  a radical  difference  in  complexion  be- 
tween the  tribes,  which  they  found  in  the  country. 

The  people  whom  they  saw  on  their  first  landing, 
and  who  are  stated  to  have  been  for  the  most  part 
naked,  are  described  as  being  black  in  color,  and  not 
very  different  from  Ethiopians,  (di  colore  neri  non 


1 Purchas,  iv.  1G55. 


ARTIFICIAL  DESCRIPTION-  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  77 

motto  dagli  Etiopi  disformi)  and  of  medium  stature; 
well  formed  of  body  and  acute  of  mind.  The  latter 
observation  would  imply  that  the  voyagers  had  mixed 
with  these  natives  very  considerably  in  order  to  have 
been  able  to  speak  so  positively  in  regard  to  their 
mental  faculties,  and  therefore  could  not  have  been 
mistaken  as  to  their  complexion  for  want  of  opportu- 
nity to  discover  it.  The  precise  place  where  they  first 
landed  and  saw  these  black  people  is  not  mentioned 
further  than  that  the  country  where  they  lived  was 
situated  in  the  thirty-fourth  degree  of  latitude.  From 
this  place  they  proceeded  further  along  the  coast  north- 
wardly, and  again  coming  to  anchor  attempted  to  go 
ashore  in  a boat  without  success,  when  one  of  them,  a 
young  sailor,  attempted  to  swim  to  the  land,  but  was 
thrown,  by  the  violence  of  the  waves,  insensible  on 
the  beach.  Upon  recovering  he  found  himself  sur- 
rounded by  natives  who  were  black  like  the  others. 
That  there  is  no  mistake  in  the  design  of  the  writer 
to  represent  these  people  as  really  black,  like  negroes, 
is  made  evident  by  his  account  of  the  complexion  of 
those  he  found  in  the  harbor  of  the  great  bay  in  lati- 
tude 41°  40',  who  are  described  as  essentially  different 
and  the  finest  looking  tribe  they  had  seen,  being  “ of  a 
very  white  complexion,  some  inclining  more  to  white, 
and  others  to  a yellow  color”  (di  colore • bianchissimo  ; 
dlcuni  pendanopiu  in  bianchezza , altri  in  colore'  flavo). 
The  difference  between  the  inhabitants  of  the  two  sec- 
tions. of  country,  in  respect  to  color,  is  thus  drawn  in 
actual  contrast. 

This  is  unfounded  in  fact.  No  black  aborigines 
have  ever  been  found  within  the  entire  limits  of  North 


78 


VERRAZZANO. 


America,  except  in  California  where  some  are  said  to 
exist.  The  Indians  of  the  Atlantic  coast  were  uni- 
formly of  a tawny  or  yellowish  brown  color,  made 
more  conspicuous  by  age  and  exposure  and  being 
almost  white  in  infancy.  The  first  voyagers  and 
early  European  settlers  universally  concur  in  assign- 
ing them  this  complexion.  Reference  need  here  be 
to  such  testimony  only  as  relates  to  the  two  parts  of 
the  country  where  the  extinction  is  pretended  to 
have  existed.  The  earliest  mention  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  more  southerly  portion  is  when  the  vessels  of 
Ayllon  and  Matienzo  carried  off  sixty  of  the  Indians 
from  the  neighborhood  of  the  Santee,  called  the  Jor- 
dan, in  1521,  and  took  them  to  St.  Domingo.  One  of 
them  went  to  Spain  with  Ayllon.  They  are  described 
by  Peter  Martyr,  from  sight,  as  semifuscos  uti  nostri 
sunt  agricolae  sole  adusti  aestivo , half  brown,  like  oyr 
husbandmen,  burnt  by  the  summer  sun.1  Barlowe,  in 
his  account  of  the  first  expedition  of  Raleigh,  which 
entered  Pamlico  sound,  within  the  region  now  under 
consideration,  describes  the  Indians  whom  he  found 
there  as  of  a “ colour  yellowish.”2  Captain  J ohn  Smith, 
speaking  of  those  of  the  Chesapeake,  remarks,  that 
they  “ are  of  a color  brown  when  they  are  of  age,  but 
they  are  born  white.”  3 On  the  other  hand  the  natives 
of  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island  in  latitude  41°  40' 
are  described  by  the  first  explorers  of  that  region  in 
substantially  the  same  terms.  Brereton,  who  accom- 
panied Gosnold  in  his  first  voyage  to  the  Elisabeth 

1 Dec.  vii,  2. 

a Hakluyt,  in.  248. 

* Smith,  Map  of  Virgina,  1612,  p.  19. 


ARTIFICIAL  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  79 

islands  and  the  main  land  opposite,  in  1602,  mentions 
the  natives  there,  as  being  of  a complexion  or  color 
much  like  a dark  olive.” 1 Martin  Pringe  who  visited 
Martha’s  Vineyard  the  next  year  and  constructed 
there  a barricade  where  the  “ people  of  the  country 
came  sometimes,  ten,  twentie,  fortie  or  three  score,  and 
at  one  time  one  hundred  and  twentie  at  once,”  says, 
“ these  people  are  inclined  to  a swart,  tawnie  or  ches- 
nut  colour,  not  by  nature  but  accidentally.” 2 And 
Roger  Williams,  partaking  of  the  same  idea  as  Pringe, 
that  the  swarthy  color  was  accidental,  testifies,  almost 
in  the  same  language  as  Captain  Smith,  that  the  Nar- 
ragansets  and  others  within  a region  of  two  hundred 
miles  of  them,  were  “ tawnie  by  the  sunne  and  their 
annoyntings,  yet  they  were  born  white.” 3 Thus  the 
authorities  flatly  contradict  the  statement  of  black 
Indians  existing  in  North  Carolina,  and  a difference 
of  color  between  the  people  of  the  two  sections  claimed 
to  have  been  visited  in  this  voyage. 

Of  an  equally  absurd  and  preposterous  character 
is  the  statement  made  in  reference  to  the  condition 
in  which  the  plants  and  vegetation  were  found.  The 
grape  particularly  is  mentioned  in  a manner  which 
proves,  beyond  question,  that  the  writer  could  not 
have  been  in  the  country.  The  dates  which  are 
given  for  the  exploration  are  positive ; and  are  con- 
clusive in  this  respect.  The  Dauphiny  is  represented 
as  having  left  Madeira  on  the  17th  of  January,  and 
arrived  on  the  coast  on  the  7th  of  March,  that  is, 


1 Purchas,  iv.  1652. 

2 Ibid,  iv.  1655. 

3 Roger  Williams’s  Key , 52. 


80 


VERRAZZANO. 


the  17th  of  that  month,  new  style.1  They  left  the 
harbor  of  the  great  bay,  where  they  had  remained  for 
fifteen  days’ on  the  6 th  of  May,  which  makes  their 
arrival  there  to  have  been  on  the  21st  of  April,  or 
first  of  May,  N.  S.  They  were  thus  during  the  months 
of  March  and  April,  engaged  in  coasting  from  the  land- 
fall to  the  great  bay  in  latitude  41°  40',  during  which 
period  the  observations  relating  to  the  intermediate 
country,  consequently,  must  have  been  made.  They 
left  the  coast,,  finally,  in  latitude  50°  N.,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  returning  to  France,  in  time  to  reach  there 
and  have  the  letter  written  announcing  their  arrival 
at  Dieppe  on  the  8 th  of  July,  and  therefore  it  must 

have  been  some  time  in  June,  at  the  latest;  so  that 
« 

very  little  if  any  portion  of  the  summer  season'  was 
passed  upon  the  coast  of  America. 

In  describing  the  country  which  they  reached  at 
the  end  of  the  fifty  leagues  north  of  the  landfall,  that 
is,  near  the  boundary  between  North  Carolina  and 
Virgin  a,  where  they  discovered  the  old  woman  and 
girl  concealed  in  the  grass  and  found  the  land  gene- 
rally, “ abounding  in  forests  filled  with  various  kinds 
of  trees  but  not  of  such  fragrance  ” as  those  where  they 
first  landed,  the  writer  gives  a particular  description 
of  the  condition  in  which  they  found  the  vines  and 
flowers. 

t 

“ We  saw,”  he  says,  “ many  vipes  there  growing  naturally,  which 
run  upon,  and  entwine  about  the  trees,  as  they  do  in  Lombardy,  and 
which  if  the  husbandmen  were  to  have  under  a perfect  system  of 
cultivation,  would  without  doubt  produce  the  best  wines , because 
tasting  ( beendo , literally,  drinking  or  sucking)  the  fruit  many  times , 
we  perceived  it  was  sweet  and  pleasant,  not  different  from  ours. 


See  ante , page  4,  note. 


ARTIFICIAL  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  81 

They  are  held  in  estimation  by  them  because  wherever  they  grow 
they  remove  the  small  trees  around  them  in  order  that  the  fruit  may 
be  able  to  germinate.  We  found  wild  roses,  violets,  lilies  and 
many  species  of  plants  and  odoriferous  flowers , different  from  ours.1 

The  flavor  and  vinous  qualities  of  the  grapes  are 
thus  particularly  mentioned  as  having  been  proven 
several  times  by  eating  the  ripe  and  luscious  fruit,  and 
in  language  peculiarly  expressive  of  the  fact.  Accord- 
ing to  the  dates  before  given,  this  must  have  occurred 
early  in  the  month  of  April,  as  the  scene  is  laid  upon 
the  coast  of  North  Carolina.  There  is  no  native  vine 
which  ever  flowers  in  this  country,  north  of  latitude 
thirty-four,  before  the  month  of  May,  and  none  that 
ripens  its  fruit  before  July,  which  is  the  month  as- 
signed by  Lawson  for  the  ripening  of  the  summer  fox 
grape  in  the  swamps  and  moist  lands  of  North  Caro- 
lina,—the  earliest  of  all  the  grapes  in  that  region.2 3 
North  of  latitude  41°  no  grape  matures  until  the  latter 
part  of  August.  As  the  explorers  are  made  to  have 
left  the  shores  of  Newfoundland  for  home  in  June,  at 
farthest,  they  were  at  no  time  on  any  part  of  the  coast, 
in  season  to  have  been  able  to  see  or  taste  the  ripe  or 
unripe  fruit  of  the  vine.  The  representation  of  the 
letter  in  this  respect  depending  both  upon  the  sight 
and  the  taste,  must,  like  that  of  the  contrasted  appear- 
ance of  the  natives,  be  regarded  as  deliberately  made ; 

1 “ Vedemmo  in  quella  molte  vite  della  natura  prodotte,  quali  alzandosi 
avvoltano  agli  alberi  come  nella  Cisalpina  Gallia  costumano ; le  quali  se 

dagli  agricultori  avessino  el  perfetto  ordine  di  cultura,  senza  dubbio  pro- 
durrebbono  ottimi  vim,  perche  pm  volte  il  frutto  di  quello  beendo,  veggi- 
endo  suave  e dolce,  non  dal  nostro  differente  sono  da  loro  tenuti  in  ex- 
timatione ; impero  che  per  tutto  dove  nascono,  levano  gli  arbusculi  circu- 
stanti  ad  causa  il  frutto  possa  gierminare.  Trovamo  rose  silvestre  et 
vivuole,  gigli  et  molte  sorte  di  erbe  e fiori  ocloriferi  da  nostri  different.” 

3 New  Voyage  to  Carolina,  p.  602. 

11 


82 


VERRAZZANO. 


and  consequently,  the  two  as  establishing  the  falsity 
of  the  description  in  those  particulars,  and  thus  involv- 
ing the  integrity  and  truth  of  the  whole. 

The  liberty  which  Kamusio  took  with  these  passages 
in  his  version  of  the  letter,  demands  notice,  and  adds 
his  testimony  again  to  the  absurdity  of  the  account. 
He  doubtless  knew,  from  the  numerous  descriptions 
which  had  been  published,  of  the  uniformity  of  the 
physical  characteristics  of  the  American  Indians  ; and 
he  certainly  knew  of  it  as  regarded  the  natives  of  this 
coast,  as  is  proven  by  his  publication  of  Oviedo’s  ac- 
count of  the  voyage  of  Gomez,  made  there  in  1525,  in 
which  they  are  described,  in  the  same  volume  with 
the  Yerrazzano  letter.1  His  own  experience,  as  to  the 
climate  of  Venice,  taught  him  also  that  grapes  could 
not  have  ripened  in  the  latitude  and  at  the  time  of 
year  assigned  for  that  purpose.  He  had  therefore 
abundant  reason  to  question  the  correctness  of  the 
letter  in  both  particulars.  As  in  the  case  of  the 
representation  of  the  extent  of  the  discovery,  before 
mentioned,  he  did  not  hesitate  to  make  them  conform 
more  to  the  truth.  He  amended  the  original  in  regard 
to  the  complexion  of  the  natives  represented  as  those 
first  seen,  by  inserting  in  place  of  the  words,  applied 
to  them,  of  “ black  and  not  much  different  from  Ethi- 
opians,” the  phrase,  “ brownish  and  not  much  unlike 
the  Saracens  ” ( berrettini 2 & non  molto  dalli  Saracini 
differenti)  by  which  they  are  likened  to  those  Arabs 
whose  complexion,  u yellow,  bordering  on  brown,”  is 

1 Tom.  m.  fol.  52,  (ed.  1556). 

3 Berrettini  is  derived  from  beretta , the  Turkish  fez,  a red  cap,  designat- 
ing also  the  scarlet  cap  of  the  cardinals  in  the  church  of  Rome. 


ARTIFICIAL  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  83 

of  a similar  cast ; 1 and  in  regard  to  the  grapes,  by 
substituting  instead  of,  “ tasting  the  fruit  many  times 
we  perceived  it  was  sweet  and  pleasant,”  the  passage, 
“ having  often  seen  the  fruit  thereof  dried , which  was 
sweet  and  pleasant,”  ( havedo  veduto  jpiu  volte  il  frutto 
di  quelle  secco , die  era  suaue  & dolce ,)  by  which  he  ap- 
parently obviates  the  objection,  but  in  fact  only  aggra- 
vates it,  by  asserting  what  has  never  yet  been  heard 
of,  among  the  Indians  of  this  coast,  the  preservation 
of  the  grape  by  drying  or  otherwise. 

It  is  evident  that  whatever  may  have  been  the 
motives  of  Ramusio  in  making  these  repeated  alter- 
ations qf  the  statements  in  the  letter,  they  not  only 
show  his  own  sense  of  their  necessity,  but  they  have 
had  the  effect  to  keep  from  the  world  the  real  charac- 
ter of  this  narrative  in  essential  particulars,  until  its 
exposure  now,  by  the  production  of  the  Carli  version. 

1 Pritchard,  Natural  History  of  Man,  p.  127  (2d  edition). 


BIRCH  BARK  CANOE. 

Still  used  by  the  Indians  on  the  Penobscot. 


84 


VERRAZZANO. 


VII. 

The  Extrinsic  Evidence  in  Support  of  the  Claim.  I. 

Discourse  of  the  French  Sea-Captain  of  Dieppe. 

The  extrinsic  evidence  which  is  urged  in  support  of 
the  claim  to  the  discovery  by  Verrazzano  is  not  of 
great  amount.  It  is  certain,  however,  that  if  the 
letter  upon  which  the  claim^  is  founded,  be  spurious 
and  fictitious,  as  for  the  reasons  assigned,  it  is  con- 
sidered to  be,  any  extraneous  evidence,  must  either 
partake  of  the  same  character,  or  have  originated  in 
some  misconception  or  error.  What  exists  upon  the 
subject  consists  principally  of  two  pieces,  which  have 
only  recently  been  regarded  of  any  importance  for  this 
purpose,  and  in  connection  with  which  the  others  may 
be  considered. 

One  of  them  is  an  anonymous  paper  entitled  in  full, 
“ Discourse  of  a great  sea-captain,  a Frenchman  of 
the  town  of  Dieppe,  as  to  the  voyages  made  to  the 
new  land  of  the  West  Indies,  called  New  France,  from 
the  40°  to  the  47°  under  the  Arctic  pole,  and  concern- 
ing the  land  of  Brazil,  Guinea,  the  island  of  St.  Law- 
rence and  that  of  Sumatra:  ” the  other  is  a map  of  the 
world,  bearing  the  name  of  Hieronimo  de  Verrazano. 

The  discourse  of  the  French  captain  does  not,  any 
more  than  the  letter  of  Verrazzano,  exist  in  the  Ori- 
ginal ; nor  has  any  copy  of  it  ever  been  produced,  ex- 
cept in  a printed  translation  by  Ramusio  in  the  same 


DISCOURSE  OF  THE  DIEPPE  CAPTAIN.  85 

volume,  as  that  in  which  his  version  of  that  letter 
appears,  and  immediately  following  it.  Ramusio  states 
that  it  was  written  in  1539,  as  may  be  inferred  from 
the  letter  itself  in  its  present  form,  and  that  he  had 
translated  it  from  the  French,  grieving  much  that  he 
did  not  know  the  name  of  the  author,  because  not  giv- 
ing it  he  seemed  to  do  wrong  to  the  memory  of  so  val- 
iant and  noble  a gentleman.  It  is  evident,  however, 
upon  comparing  the  description,  which  it  gives,  of  a 
voyage  made  from  Dieppe  to  Sumatra,  with  the  ori- 
ginal journal,  first  brought  to  light  and  published  a 
few  years  ago,  of  such  a voyage  made  by  Jean 
Parmentier  in  1529,  that  this  discourse  was  written  by 
some  one  of  the  persons  engaged  in  that  expedition.1 
Its  authenticity,  in  general,  may  therefore  not  be  ques- 
tioned. But  as  the  original  has  never  been  produced 
and  it  is  only  known  through  this  version  of  Ramusio, 
experience  in  regard  to  his  practice  as  a compiler,  of 
altering  texts  according  to  his  judgment  of  their  de- 
fects and  errors,  proves  that  we  have  by  no  means  a 
reliable  copy  for  our  guidance.  In  fact,  as  given  by 
Ramusio,  its  recognition  of  the  Verrazzano  discovery  is 
only  by  way  of  parenthesis,  and  in  such  antagonism 
to  the  context,  as  to  render  it  quite  certain  that  this 
portion  of  it  is  by  another  hand. 

1 Voyages  et  decouvertes  des  navigateurs  JVormands.  Par  L.  Estancelin,  p. 
241.  (Paris  1832.)  M.  Estancelin  supposes  that  Pierre  Mauclere  the  astrono- 
mer of  one  of  the  ships  composing  the  expedition  of  Parmentier,  was  the 
author  of  this  discourse  (p.  45,  note).  But  M.  D’Avezac  attributes  it  to 
Pierre  Crignon,  who  also  accompanied  Parmentier,  and  who  besides  being 
the  editor  of  a collection  of  poems  by  Parmentier,  after  his  death,  evinced 
his  knowledge  of  nautical  matters  by  writing  a dissertation  on  the  varia- 
tion of  the  needle.  Introduction  to  the  Brief  Recii  of  Jacques  Cartier,  p. 
vii.  (Tross,  Paris,  1863.)  Brunet,  sub  Parmentier.  Margry,  Les  naviga -• 
teurs  Franqaises , p.  199. 


86 


VERRAZZANO. 


The  writer,  after  explaining  the  nature  of  latitude 
and  longitude,  and  taking  the  meridian  of  no  varia- 
tion running  through  the  eastern  extremity  of  the 
Cape  de  Yerde  islands  as  the  basis  of  his  observations 
of  longitude,  proceeds  to  a description  of  Terra  Nova; 
so  much  of  which  as  is  pertinent  is  here  abstracted. 

“ The  Terra  Nova,  the  nearest  cape  of  which  is  called  the  Cape 
de  Has,  is  situated  west  of  our  diametrical  or  meridional  line  where- 
on is  fixed  the  first  point  of  longitude  according  to  the  true  meridian 
of  the  compass ; and  the  said  Cape  de  Ras  is  in  west  longitude  40° 
and  47  of  North  latitude.  The  Terra  Nova  extends  towards  the 
Arctic  pole  from  40°  to  60,  and  from  Cape  de  Ras  going  towards 
the  pole,  the  coast  almost  always  runs  from  south  to  north,  and  con- 
tains in  all  350  leagues,  and  from  said  Cape  de  Ras  to  the  cape  of 
the  Brettons,  the  coast  runs  east  and  west,  for  an  hundred  leagues, 
and  the  cape  of  the  Brettons  is  in  47°  west  longitude  and  46  north 
latitude.  To  go  from  Dieppe  to  the  Terra  Nova,  the  course  is  almost 
all  east  and  west,  and  there  are  from  Dieppe  to  said  Cape  de  Ras 
760  leagues. 

“ Between  Cape  de  Ras  and  cape  of  the  Brettons  dwell  an  austere 
and  cruel  people  with  whom  you  cannot  treat  or  converse.  They 
are  large  of  person,  clad  in  skins  of  seals  and  other  wild  animals 
tied  together,  and  are  marked  with  certain  lines,  made  with  fire,  on 
the  face  and  as  it  were  striped  with  color  between  black  and  red, 

( tra  il  nero  & berrettino)  and  in  many  respects  as  to  face  and  neck, 
are  like  those  of  our  Barbary,  the  hair  long  like  women,  which  they 
gather  up  on  top  of  the  head  as  we  do  with  a horse’s  tail.  Their 
arrows  are  bows  with  which  they  shoot  very  dexterously,  and  their 
arrows  are  pointed  with  black  stones  and  fish  bones.  * * * * 

“ This  land  was  discovered  35  years  ago,  that  is,  the  part  that  runs 
east  and  west,  by  the  Brettons  and  Normands,  for  which  reason  the 
land  is  called  the  Cape  of  the  Brettons.  The  other  part  that  runs 
north  and  south  was  discovered  by  the  Portuguese  from  Cape  de  Ras 
to  Cape  Buona-vista,  which  contains  about  70  leagues,  and  the  rest 
was  discovered  as  far  as  the  gulf  of  the  Castles,  and  further  on  by 
said  Brettons  and  Normands,  and  it  is  about  33  years  since  a ship 
from  Honfleur  of  which  Jean  Denys  (Giovanni  Dionisio)  was  captain 
and  Camart  (Camarto)  of  Rouen,  was  pilot,  first  went  there,  and  in 
£he  year  1508,  a Dieppe  vessel,  called  the  Pensee,  which  was  owned 
by  Jean  Ango,  father  of  Monsignor,  the  captain  and  Yiscount  of 


DISCOURSE  OF  THE  DIEPPE  CAPTAIN.  87 

I)ieppe  went  thither,  the  master  or  the  captain  of  said  ship  being 
Thomas  Aubert,  and  he  was  the  first  who  brought  hither^  people  of 
the  said  country. 

“ Following  beyond  the  cape  of  the  Brettons  there  is  a land  con- 
tiguous to  the  said  cape,  the  coast  whereof  extends  west  by  south- 
west as  far  as  the  land  of  Florida  and  it  runs  full  500  leagues,  (which 
coast  was  discovered  fifteen  years  ago , by  Messer  Giovanni  da  Ver- 
razzano,  in  the  name  of  King  Francis , and  Madame  the  regent,)  and 
this  land  is  called  by  many  la  Francese,  and  likewise  by  the  Portu- 
guese themselves  and  its  end  towards  Florida  is  at  78°  west  longi- 
tude and  30°  north  latitude.  The  inhabitants  of  this  land  are  tract- 
able peoples,  friendly  and  pleasant.  The  land  is  most  abundant  in 
all  fruit.  There  grow  oranges,  almonds,  wild  grapes  and  many  other 
kinds  of  odoriferous  trees.  The  land  is  called  by  its  people  Nurum- 
bega,  and  between  this  land  and  that  of  Brazil  is  a great  gulf  which 
extends  westwardly  to  92°  west  longitude,  which  is  more  than  a 
quarter  of  the  circuit  of  the  globe  ; and  in  the  gulf  are  the  islands 
and  West  Indies  discovered  by  the  Spaniards.”  1 

This  account  emphatically  contradicts  the  Yerraz- 
zano  letter  which  claims  the  discovery  of  the  coast 
from  Cape  Breton  in  46°  N.  as  far  east  and  north  as 
50°  N.  latitude,  embracing  a distance  of  two  hundred 
leagues,  both  according  to  the  letter  and  the  discourse. 
It  distinctly  affirms  this  long  stretch  of  coast  to  have 
been  discovered  long  before  the  Yerrazzano  voyage  by 
the  Portuguese  and  the  Bretons  and  Normands,  assign- 
ing to  the  Portuguese  and  French  specific.portions  of  it. 
This  is  in  perfect  harmony  with  the  truth  as  established 
by  the  authorities  to  which  occasion  has  already  been 
had  to  refer.  This  account  therefore  unequivocally 
repudiates  the  Yerrazzano  claim  to  the  discovery  of 
that  part  of  the  country,  and  thus  derogates  from  the 
pretensions  of  the  letter  instead  of  supporting  them. 

The  letter  contains  a distinct  and  specific  claim  for 
the  discovery  of  the  coast  as  far  north  as  50°  N.  The 


1 Ramusio,  hi.  fol.  423-4  (ed.  1556). 


88 


VERRAZZANO. 


writer  of  the  discourse,  if  he  had  any  knowledge  on  tfye 
subject, .must  have  known  of  the  extent  of  this  claim. 
In  attributing  to  others  the  discovery  of  that  large 
portion  of  the  coast,  east  and*  north  *of  Cape  Breton,  he 
must  have  considered  the  claim  to  that  extent  as  un: 
founded.  It  is  difficult  therefore  to  account  for  his 
admitting  its  validity  as  regards  the  country  south  of 
Cape  Breton  as  he  apparently  does  ; as  it  is  a manifest 
inconsistency  to  reject  so  important  a part  as  false, 
and  affirm  the  rest  of  it  to  be  true,  when  the  whole 
depends  upon  the  same  evidence. 

Another  circumstance  to  be  remarked  is,  that  the* 
description,  which  follows,  of  the  country  said  to  have 
been  discovered  by  Verrazzano,  has  not  the  slightest 
reference  to  the  account  given  in  the  letter,  but  is  evi- 
dently derived  from  other  sources  of  discovery.  Two 
names  are  attributed  to  it,  Francese  and  Nurumbega , 
both  of  which  owe  their  designation  to  other  voyagers. 
Francese,  or  French  land,  appears  for  the  first  time  in 
any  publication,  on  two  maps  hereafter  mentioned, 
printed  in  1540,  under  the  Latin  form  of  Francisca.  It 
is  called  in  the  manuscript  cosmography  and  charts  of 
Jean  Alfonse,  terre  de  la  Franciscane.  An  earlier 
map  by  Baptista  Agnese,  described  by  Mr.  Kohl,  indi- 
cates that  the  name  owes  its  origin,  as  will  hereafter  be 
pointed  out,  to  the  voyages  of  the  French  fishermen 
to  the  shores  of  Nova  Scotia  and  New  England.1 
Nurumbega,  as  the  writer  himself  states,  is  an  Indian 
name,  which  could  not  have  been  taken  from  the  Ver- 
razzano account,  as  that  does  not  mention  a single  Indian 
word  of  any  kind.  The  statement  of  the  productions 

1 Discovery  of  Maine , p.  202,  chart  xiv. 


DISCOURSE  OF  THE  DIEPPE  CAPTAIN.  89 

of  the  country  includes  oranges,  which  do  not  belong 
to  any  portion  of  the  continent  claimed  to  have  been 
visited  by  Yerrazzano,  and  plainly  indicates  an  entirely  * 
different  authority  for  that  portion  of  the  coast.  It 
is  therefore  equally  unaccountable  why  the  author  of 
the  discourse  should  have  acknowledged  the  discovery 
by  Yerrazzano  and,  at  the  same  time,  have  passed  over 
altogether  the  description  in  the  letter,  and  sought  his 
information  in  regard  to  the  country  elsewhere,  when 
he  had  there  such  ample  details,  especially  in  connec- 
tion with  the  great  bay. 

The  solution  of  the  whole  difficulty  is  to  be  found 
in  the  fact  that  the  clause  relating  to  Yerrazzano  was 
not  the  work  of  the  author  of  the  discourse,  but  of  an- 
other person.  It  is  not  difficult  to  understand  how 
and  by  whom  this  interpolation  came  to  be  made. 
Ramusio  had  both  the  letter  and  the  discourse  in 
his  hands  at  the  same  time,  for  the  purpose  of  pre- 
paring them  for  publication,  recomposing  the  one,  as 
has  already  been  shown,  and  translating  the  other 
from  the  French  into  the  Italian,  as  he  himself  states. 
In  the  execution  of  the  former  of  these  tasks,  he  took 
the  liberty  of  altering  the  letter,  as  has  been  proven, 
by  substituting  the  phrase  of,  the  land  discovered  by 
the  Bretons , for  that  of,  the  country  explored  by  the 
Portuguese , as  the  northern  limit  of  the  voyage  of 
Yerrazzano ; thereby  removing  the  objection,  to  which 
the  letter  was  obnoxious,  of  entirely  ignoring  the  dis- 
coveries of  the  Bretons,  which  were  distinctly  asserted 
in  the  discourse.  In  order  to  conform  to  the  Yerraz- 
zano letter,  as  it  was  thus  modified,  it  was  necessary 
to  insert  this  clause  in  the  discourse,  which  would  else 
12 


90 


VERRAZZANO. 


appear  to  contradict  the  letter  entirely.  The  two 
alterations,  however  necessary  they  were  to  preserve 
% some  consistency  between  the  two  documents,  are, 
nevertheless,  both  alike  repugnant  to  the  original 
letter. 

This  discourse  fails,  therefore,  as  an  authority  in 
favor  of  the  Yerrazzano  discovery,  or  even  of  the  exist- 
ence of  a claim  in  its  behalf ; the  statement  which  it 
contains  in  relation  to  Verrazzano,  originating  with 
Ramusio  adding  nothing  to  the  case.1 

1 Tlie  writer  gives,  however,  some  details  in  relation  to  the  Indians  and 
the  fisheries  along  the  easterly  coast  of  Newfoundland,  illustrative  of  cer- 
tain points  which  have  arisen  in  the  course  of  this  enquiry.  Continuing  his 
remarks,  as  given  in  the  text,  in  regard  to  the  Indians  inhabiting  the  south- 
erly coast  between  Cape  Race  and  Cape  Breton,  he  states : “ there  are  many 
stags  and  deer,  and  birds  like  geese  and  margaux.  On  the  coast  there  is  much 
good  fishery  of  cod,  which  fish  are  taken  by  the  French  and  Bretons , only 
because  those  of  the  country  do  not  take  them.  In  the  coast  running,  north 
and  south,  from  Cape  de  Ras  to  the  entrance  of  the  Castles,  [straits  of 
Belle-Isle]  there  are  great  gulfs  and  rivers,  and  numerous  islands,  many 
of  them  large ; and  .this  country  is  thinly  inhabited,  except  the  afore- 
said coast,  and  the  people  are  smaller  ; and  there  is  great  fishery  of  cod  as 
on  the  other  coast.  There  has  not  been  seen  there  either  village,  or  town, 
or  castle,  except  a great  enclosure  of  wood,  which  was  seen  in  the  gulf  of 
the  Castles  ; and  the  aforesaid  people  dwell  in  little  cabins  and  huts,  covered 
With  the  bark  of  trees,  which  they  make  to  live  in  during  the  time  of  the 
fisheries,  which  commences  in  spring  and  lasts  all  the  summer.  Their  fishery 
is  of  seal,  and  porpoises  which,  with  certain  seafowl  called  margaux,  they 
take  in  the  islands  and  dry ; and  of  the  grease  of  said  fish  they  make  oil, 
and  when  the  time  of  their  fishery  is  ended,  winter  coming  on,  they  depart 
with  their  fish,  and  go  away,  in  little  boats  made  of  the  bark  of  trees , called 
buily  into  other  countries,  which  are  perhaps  warmer,  but  we  know  not 
where.” 


niUKitNlA 


THE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


91 


VIII. 

0 

II.  The  Verrazano  Map.  It  is  not  an  Authoritative 
Exposition  op  the  Verrazzano  Discovery.  Its  Origin 
and  Date  in  its  present  Form.  The  Letter  op  An- 
nibal  Caro.  The  Map  presented  to  Henry  YIII. 
Voyages  op  Verrazzano.  The  Globe  op  Euphrosynus 
Ulpius. 

The  map  of  Hieronimo  de  Verrazano,  recently  brought 
to  particular  notice,1  is  a planisphere  on  a roll  of  parch- 
ment eight  feet  and  a half  long  and  of  corresponding 
width,  formerly  belonging  to  Cardinal  Stefano  Borgia, 
in  whose  museum,  in  the  college  of  the  Propaganda  in 
the  Vatican,  it  is  now  preserved.  It  has  no  date, 
though,  from  a legend  upon  it  referring  to  the  Verraz- 
zano discovery,  it  may  be  inferred  that  the  year  1529 
is  intended  to  be  understood  as  the  time  when  it  was 
constructed.  No  paleographical  description  of  it,  how- 
ever, has  yet  been  published,  from  which  the  period 
of  its  construction  might  be  determined,  or  the  con- 
gruity  of  its  parts  verified.  It  may,  however,  in  order 
to  disencumber  the  question,  be  admitted  to  be  the  map 
mentioned  by  Annibal  Caro  in  1537,  in  a letter  to  which 
occasion  will  hereafter  be  had  to  refer,  and  that  its 
author  was  the  brother  of  the  navigator,  though  of 
• both  these  facts  satisfactory  proof  is  wanting.2 


1 Journal  of  the  American  Geographical  Society  of  New  York.  1873  Vol. 
rv.  Notes  on  the  Verrazano  map.  By  James  Carson  Brevoort. 

2 This  map  was  either  unknown  to  Ramusio  and  Gastakli  or  discredited 
by  them.  Ramusio  in  his  preface,  after  mentioning  to  Fracastor  that  he 


92 


VERRAZZANO. 


No  entirely  legible  copy  of  this  map  has  yet  been 
made  public.  Two  photographs,  both  much  reduced 
from  the  original,  have  been  made  for  the  American 
Geographical  Society,  from  the  larger  of  which,  so 
mjich  as  relates  to  the  present  purpose,  has  been  care- 
fully reproduced  here  on  the  same  scale.  It  is  to  be 
regretted  that  the  names  along  the  coast,  and  the 
legends  relating  to  the  Yerrazzano  exploration,  are  not 
photographed  distinctly,  though  the  legends  and  a few 
names  have  been  supplied  by  means  of  a pen.  But  al- 
though a knowledge  of  all  the  names  is  necessary  for 
a thorough  understanding  of  this  map,  these  photo- 
graphs, nevertheless,  affording  a true  transcript  of  it  in 
other  respects,  enable  us  to  determine  that  it  is  of  no 
authority  as  to  the  alleged  discovery  itself.* 1 

It  will  be  found,  in  the  first  place,  to  contravene 
the  Yerrazzano  letter  as  to  the  limits  of  the  discovery, 
both  north  and  south,  and  to  indicate  merely  an 
attempt  to  reconcile  that  discovery  generally  with  the 

placed  the  relation  of  Verrazzano  and  Jacques  Cartier  in  that  volume,  adds, 
that  inasmuch  as  Fracastor  had  exhorted  him  to  make,  in  imitation  of 
Ptolemy,  four  or  five  maps  of  as  much  as  was  known  up  to  that  time  of 
the  part  of  the  world  recently  discovered,  he  could  not  disobey  his  com- 
mands, and  had  therefore  arranged  to  have  them  made  by  the  Piedmontese 
cosmographer,  Giacomo  de  Gastaldi.  They  are  accordingly  to  be  found 
in  the  same  volume  with  the  letter  of  Verrazzano.  One  of  them  is  d map 
of  New  France  extending  somewhat  south  of  Norumbega,  but  no  features 
of  the  Verrazano  map  are  to  be  traced  upon  it : and  no  other  map  of  the 
country  is  given.  Fol.  424-5. 

1 This  map  was  first  brought  to  public  notice  by  M.  Tliomassey,  in  a 
memoir  entitled,  Les  Papes  Geographes  et  la  Cosmographie  du  Vatican , 
which  was  published  in  the  Nouvelles  Annales  des  Voyages.  Nouvelleserie, 
tome  xxxv.  Annee  1853.  Tome  Troisieme.  Paris.  We  are  indebted 
to  this  memoir  for  the  explanation  on  our  copy  of  the  map  of  the  scale  of 
distances,  which  is  illegible  on  the  photographs.  According  to  this  explana- 
tion there  should  be  nine  points  in  the  narrower,  and  nineteen  in  the  wider 
spaces.  These  being  two  and  a half  leagues  apart,  give  twenty-five  leagues 
for  the  smaller  and  fifty  leagues  for  the  larger  spaces,  making  three  hun- 
dred and  fifty  leagues  for  the  whole  scale. 


THE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


93 


discoveries  of  the  Spaniards,  Bretons  and  Portuguese, 
as  shown  on  the  maps  of  the  period  to  which  it  relates. 

The  coast  of  North  America  is  laid  down  contin- 
uously from  the  gulf  of  Mexico  to  Davis  straits,  in  lati- 
tude 60°  N.  Beginning  at  the  point  of  Florida,  which 
is  placed  in  latitude  33  i°  N.y  more  than  eight  degrees 
north  of  its  true  position,  it  runs  northerly  along  the 
Atlantic,  trending  slighfly  to  the  west,  to  a bay  or  river, 
in  latitude  38°  N.  On  this  part  of  the  country,  called 
Terra  Florida,  the  arms  of  Spain  are  represented, 
denoting  its  discovery  by  the  Spaniards  : and  the  whole 
of  its  coast  for  a distance  of  eighty  or  ninety  leagues, 
is  entirely  devoid  of  names. 

From  38°  N.  that  is,  from  the  land  of  Florida  as 
here  shown,  the  coast  continues  in  a northerly  direc- 
tion thirty  or  forty  leagues  further,  to  a point  between 
40°  and  41°  N.  when,  turning  northeasterly,  it  runs 
with  slight  variations,  on  a general  course  of  east  north 
east,  for  six  hundred  and  fifty  leagues  to  Cape  Breton 
placed  in  latitude  51  i N.,  fi  ve  and  a half  degrees  north 
of  it  true  position.  Along  this  part  of  the  coast  more  , 
than  sixty  names  of  places  occur  at  intervals  suffi- 
ciently regular  to  denote  one  continuous  exploration. 
They  are  for  the  most  part  undistinguishable  on  the 
photographs,  but  nine  of  them,  at  the  beginning,  are 
made  legible  by  hand,  the  first  two  of  which  commenc- 
ing at  latitude  38°,  are  Dieppa  and  Livorno.  The  others, 
proceeding  north,  are  Punta  de  Calami , Palamsina , 
Pdara  jlor , Comana , Santiago , C.  d’  Olimpe , and  Olimpe, 
indicating  a nomenclature  different  from  that  used  on 
any  other  known  map  of  this  region.  At  a distance 
of  three  hundred  leagues  from  Dieppa,  • and  in  latitude 
46°  N.j  is  a large  triangular  island,  designated  by  the 


94 


VERRAZZANO. 


name  of  Luisia.  Hence  to  Cape  Breton  the  names  are 
illegibly  photographed.  Along  this  coast,  at  three 
points,  namely,  in  latitude  42°  ; opposite  the  island  of 
Luisia,  in  latitude  46  ; and  in  latitude  50°,  standards 
are  displayed,  the  nationality  of  which  cannot  be  distin- 
guished, but  which  no  doubt  were  intended  for  those 
of  France,  inasmuch  as  over  them  occurs  the  name  of 
Nova  Gallia  sive  Iucatanet  in  large,  commanding  letters, 
with  the  Verrazzano  legend,  before  referred  to  under- 
neath it,  in  these  words : 4 Verrazana  seu  Gallia  nova 
quale  discopri  5 anni  fa  Giovanni  di  Verrazano  fioren - 
tino  per  ordine  et  comajidamete  del  Ghrystianissimo  Re 
di  Francia ; that  is,  Verrazzana  or  New  Gaul  which 
Giovanni  di  Verrazzano,  a Florentine,  discovered  five 
years  ago  by  order  and  command  of  the  most  Christian 
king  of  France.1 

Over  Cape  Breton  is  a representation  of  the  shield 
1 of  Brittany,  denoted  by  its  ermines,  in  token  ,of  the 
discovery  of  that  country  by  the  Bretons,  which  is 
separated  by  a bay  or  gulf  from  Terra  Nova • sive  Le 
Molue , the  latter  term  being  evidently  intended  for 
Bacalao  (codfish,  Fr.  morue),  the  received  name  of 
Newfoundland.  The  southerly  coast  of  Terra  Nova  for 
an  hundred  leagues,  and  its  easterly  coast  running  to 
the  north,  are  delineated,  with  the  Portuguese  name  of 
G.  Raso  and  the  island  of  Baccalaos  barely  legible.  The 
coast  runs  north  from  C.  Raso  to  C.  Formoso  in  lati- 
tude 60°  where  it  meets  the  straits  which  separate  it 

1 The  names  Verrazzana  and  Verrazzano  in  this  legend  are  'written  on 
the  photograph  by  hand,  with  a double  2,  though  M.  Thomassey  uses 
only  the  single  z , which  is  adopted  on  our  copy.  It  would  be  a singular 
circumstance,  leading  to  some  speculation,  if  they  should  really  be  spelt 
with  the  two  z’s  on  the  original.  Hieronimo,  if  he  were  the  brother  of 
Giovanni,  wo.uld  hardly  have  written  his  own  name,  as  it  is  inscribed  on  the 
map,  with  one  z,  and  that  of  his  brother  with  two,  in  the  same  document. 


THE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


95 


from  Terra  Laboratoris , the  country  discovered  by  Gas- 
par  Cortereal  on  his  first  voyage,  but  here  attributed 
to  the  English,  and  being  in  fact  Greenland.1 

It  is  obvious  that  the  discoveries  of  Verrazzano  are 
thus  intended  to  embrace  the  coast  from  latitude  38° 
N.  to  Cape  Breton,  that  is,  between  the  points  desig- 
nated by  the  armorial  designations  of  Spain  and  Brit- 
tany, and  not  beyond  either,  as  that  would  make  the 
map  contradict  itself.  That  they  begin  at  the  parallel 
38  is  shown  by  the  names  of  Dieppa  and  Livorno, 
(Leghorn),  which  commemorate  the  port  to  which  the 
expedition  of  Verrazzano  belonged,  and  the  country  in 
which  he  himself  was  born.  These  names  cannot  be 
associated  with  any  other  alleged  expedition.  They 
are  given  on  the  map  which  contains  the  legend  de- 
claring the  country  generally  to  have  been  discovered 
by  him ; and  are  not  found  on  any  other.  There  can 
he  no  (jloubt,  therefore,  that  they  are  meant  to  indicate 
the  beginning  of  his  exploration  in  the  south. 

That  his  discoveries  are  represented  as  extending 
in  the  north  to  Cape  Breton  is  proven  by  the  continua- 
tion of  the  names  to  that  point,  showing  an  explora- 
tion by  some  voyager  along  that  entire  coast,  and  by 
the  absence  of  any  designation  of  its  discovery  by  any 
other  nation  than  the  French ; while  the  distance  from 
Dieppa  to  Cape  Breton  is  laid  down  as  seven  hundred 
leagues,  the  same  as  claimed  for  this  exploration. 

Butin  restricting  his  discoveries  .to  latitude  38°  N. 

1 Mr.  Brevoort  gives  other  names  as  legible  on  the  easterly  coast  of 
Terra  Nova,  which  we  have  not  been  able  to  distinguish,  namely:  c.  de 
spera , ilia  de  san  luis,  monte  de  trigo , and  ilia  dos  aves.  Mr.  B.  reads 
Iucatanet,  and  M.  Margry  Yucatanet,  where  our  engraver  has  Iuca- 
tania,  for  the  general’  name  of  the  country.  The  word  in  either  form  is 
apochryphal,  as  Yucatan  is  designated  in  its  proper  place,  though  as  an 
island;  but  which  form  is  correct  cannot  be  determined  from  the 
photograph. 


96 


VERRAZZANO. 


on  the  south,  this  map  essentially  departs  from  the 
claim  set  up  in  the  letter  ascribed,  to  Verrazzano  which 
carries  them  to  fifty  leagues  south  of  34° ; and  on  the 
other  hand,  in  limiting  them,  in  the  north,  to  the  land 
discovered  by  the  Bretons,  it  conforms  to  its  Portu- 
guese authorities,  upon  which,  as  will  be  seen,  it  was 
founded,  but,  in  so  doing,  contradicts  the  letter  which 
extends  tliem  to  the  point  where  the  Portuguese  com- 
menced their  explorations  to  the  Arctic  circle,  which 
this  map  itself  shows  were  on  the  east  side  of  Terra 
Nova.  Verrazzano  the  navigator,  therefore,  could  not 
have  been  the  author  of  the  letter  and  also  the  author- 
ity for  the  map. 

That  this  map  did  not  proceed  from  him  is  also 
proven  by  the  representation  upon  it  of  a great  ocean, 
called  Mare  Occidentale,  which  is  laid  down  between 
the  parallels  within  which  these  discoveries  are  con- 
fined. It  lies  on  the  west  side  of  the  continent  but 
approaches  so  near  the  Atlantic,  in  latitude  41°  N., 
that  is,  in  the  vicinity  of  New  York,  that  according  to 
a legend  describing  it,  the  two  oceans  are  there  only 
six  miles  apart,  and  can  be  seen  from  each  other. 
This  isthmus  occurs  several  hundred  miles  north  of 
Dieppa,  and  therefore  at  a point  absolutely  fixed  with- 
in the  limits  of  the  Verrazzano  discoveries,  and  where 
the  navigator  must  have  sailed,  according  to  both  the 
letter  and  the  map,  whether  the  latitudes  on  the  map 
be  correctly  described  or  not.  This  western  sea  is  thus 
made  by  its  position  a part  of  the  discoveries  of  Verraz- 
zano, and  is  declared  by  the  legend  to  have  been  actually 
seen ; and  as  he  was  the  discoverer,  it  must  be  intended 
to  have  been  seen  by  him.  As,  however,  there  is  no  such 
sea  in  reality,  Verrazzano  could  never  have  seen  it;  and 


97 


THE  VERRAZANG  MAP. 

therefore,  he  could  not  have  so  represented ; or  if  he 
did,  then  the  whole  story  must  for  that  reason  alone 
be  discredited.  There  is  no  escape  from  this  dilemma. 
Verrazzano  could  not  have  been  deceived  and  have 
mistaken  some  other  sheet  of  water  for  this  great  sea, 
and  so  represented  it  on  any  chart,  or  communicated 
it  in  any  other  way  to  the  maker  of  this  map  ; for  he 
makes  no  mention  of  the  circumstance  in  his  letter  to  the 
# king  to  whom  he  would  have  been  prompt  to  report  so 
important  a fact ; as  it  would  have  proved  the  accom- 
plishment of  the  object  of  his  voyage, — the  discovery 
of  a passage  through  this  region  ’to  Cathay,  or  if  not  a 
passage,  at  least  a way,  which  could  have  been  made 
available  for  reaching  the  land  of  spices  and  aromatics, 
by  reason  of  its  low  grade,  evident  by  one  sea  being 
seen  from  the  other,  and  its  short  distance. 

The  unauthentic  character  of  this  map,  and  the  man- 
ner in  which  its  representation  of  the  Verrazzano  dis- 
coveries was  produced,  distinctly  appear  in  its  method 
of  construction.  Cape  Breton  and  Terra  Nova  are  repre- 
sented as  thky  are  laid  down  on  the  charts  of  Pedro 
Reinel  and  the  anonymous  cartographer,—  reproduced 
on  the  first  and  fourth  sheets  of  the  Munich  atlas 
and  unquestionably  belonging  to  the  period  anterior  to 
the  discovery  of  the  continuity  of  the  land  from  Florida 
to  Cape  Breton.  They  bear  the  names  which  are 
found  on  those  maps,  importing  their  discovery  thus 
early  by  the  Bretons  and  Portuguese.  In  the  south, 
the  designation  of  Florida  as  a Spanish  discovery,  with 
its  southerly  coast  running  along  the  parallel  of  thirty- 
three  and  a half  of  north  latitude,  eight  degrees  north 
of  its  actual  position,  is  precisely  the  same  as  it  is 
13 


98 


VERRAZZANO. 


shown  on  the  anonymous  Portuguese  chart  just  men- 
tioned. These  representations  of  the  country,  in  the 
north  and  the  south,  were  thus  adopted  as  the  basis 
of  this  map.  But  as  there  were  not  seven  hundred 
leagues  of  coast  between  latitude  38°  and  Cape  Bre- 
ton, which  is  the  distance  it  indicates  as  having  been 
explored  by  Verrazzano,  that  extent  could  be  obtained 
only,  either  by  changing  the  latitude  of  Florida  or 
Cape  Breton,  or  prolonging  the  coast  longitudinally, 
or  both.  The  latitude  of  the  northerly  limit  of  Florida 
having  been  preserved  for  the  commencement  of  the 
discoveries,  Cape  Breton  had  therefore  to  be  changed 
and  was  accordingly  carried  five  degrees  and  a half 
.further  north  and  placed  in  latitude  51  i instead  of  46, 
and  by  consequence  the  whole  line  of  coast  was  thrown 
several  degrees  in  that  direction,  as  is  proven  by  the 
position  of  the  island  of  Louise-,  which  thus  falls  in 
46°  N.  instead  of  41°,  the  latitude  assigned  to  it  in  the 
letter.  Nothing  could  more  conclusively  show  the 
factitious  origin  of  this  delineation  and  its  worthless- 
ness as  an  exposition  of  the  Verrazzano  discovery. 

Some  importance,  however,  attaches  to  this  map  in 
its  assisting  us  to  fix  approximately  the  time  of  the 
fabrication  of  the  Verrazzano  letter.  If  it  were  con- 
structed in  1529,  as  some  would  infer,  with  the  portions 
relating  to  the  discovery  upon  it,  then  it  is  the  earliest 
recognition  of  the  claim  to  this  discovery  yet  produced, 
irrespective  of  the  letter.  But  it  is  by  no  means  certain 
that  it  was  originally  made  in  that  year.  Nothing 
appears  on  the  map  itself  giving  that  date  in  terms  ; 
but  it  is  left  to  be  inferred  exclusively  from  the  lan- 
guage of  the  legend,  which  states  that  the  discovery 


THE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


99 


was  made  five  years  ago , without  any  indication,  either 
in  the  legend  itself  or  elsewhere  on  the  map,  to  what 
time  that  period  relates ; and  leaving  the  discovery, 
therefore,  to  be  ascertained  from  extraneous  sources. 
If  the  discovery  be  assumed  to  have  been  made  in  1524, 
then  indeed  the  map,  according  to  the  legend,  would 
have  been  constructed  in  1529.  But  no  person,  unac- 
quainted with  the  letter,  can  determine  from  this  in- 
scription, or  any  other  part  of  the  map,  the  date  either 
of  the  discovery  or  map;  and  this  precise  difficulty 
Euphrosynus  Ulpius  apparently  encountered  in  at- 
tempting to  fix  the  time  of  the  discovery  for  his  globe, 
as  will  hereafter  be  seen.  Why  the  time  of  the  dis- 
covery should  have  been  left  in  such  an  ambiguous  state, 
compatibly  with  fair  intentions,  it  is  difficult  to  under- 
stand. The  year  itself  could  and  should,  in  the 
absence  of  any  date  on  the  map,  have  been  stated 
directly  in  the  legend,  without  compelling  a resort  to 
other  authorities.  It  is  not  unusual,  it  is  true,  for 
valuable  maps  and  charts  of  this  period  to  be  left  with- 
out the  dates  of  their  construction  upon  them ; but 
when,  as  in  this  case,  a date  is  called  for,  there  seems 
to  be  no  reason  why  it  should  not  have  been  given. 
This  circumstance  creates  the  suspicion  that  the  legend 
did  not  belong  to  the  map  originally,  but  was  added 
afterwards,  as  it  now  appears  on  the  copy  in  the  V ati- 
can ; or  if  it  were  upon  it  then,  that  it  was  intended  to 
mislead  and  conceal  the  true  date  of  the  map.  But 
whatever  may  be  the  secret  of  its  origin,  this  legend 
furnishes  no  positive  evidence  as  to  the  time  when  the 
map  was  made,  or  pretended  to  have  been  made ; and 
we  are  left  to  find  its  date,  if  possible,  by  other  means. 


100 


VERRAZZANO. 


A fact  which  indicates  that  this  map  could  not 
have  existed  as  late  as  1536,  in  the  form  in  which  it  is 
now  presented,  if  it  existed  then  at  all,  is  that  the 
western  sea  is  delineated  upon  a map  of  the  world,  made 
in  that  year,  by  Baptista  Agnese,  an  Italian  cosmo- 
grapher,  without  any  reference  to  the  Yerrazzano  dis- 
coveries, under  circumstances  which  would  have  led 
him  to  have  recognized  them  if  he  knew  of  them, 
and  which  would  have  required  him  to  have  done  so  if 
this  map  were  his  authority.  This  sea  is  laid  down 
by  Agnese  in  the  same  manner  as  it  is  shown  on  the 
Yerrazano  map,  approaching  the  Atlantic,  from  the 
north,  along  a narrow  isthmus  terminating  at  latitude 
40°,  with  the  coast  turning  abruptly  to  the  west;  the 
ocean  being  thus  represented  open  thence  from  the  isth- 
mus to  Cathay.  A track  of  French  navigation,  not  a 
single  voyage,  expressed  by  the  words  : el  viages  d e 
France , is  designated  upon  it,  leading  from  the  north  of 
France  to  this  isthmus,  referring  obviously  to  the  voy- 
ages of  the  fishermen  of  Brittany  and  Normandy,  to 
the  coasts  of  Nova  Scotia  and  New  England.  No  allu- 
sion is  made  to  the  voyage  of  Yerrazzano,  or  to  the  dis- 
coveries attributed  to  him  by  the  Yerrazano  map.  The 
Atlantic  coast  on  the  contrary,  is  plainly  delineated 
after  the  Spanish  map  of  Ribero,  as  is  shown  by  the 
form,  peculiar  to  that  map,  of  the  coast,  at  latitude  40°, 
returning  to  the  west.  It  is  apparent,  therefore,  that 
the  two  maps  of  Agnese  and  Yerrazano,  both  represent- 
ing the  western  sea  in  the  same  form,  must  have  been 
derived  from  a common  source,  or  else  one  was  taken 
from  the  other ; and  that  the  map  of  Agnese  could  not, 
in  either  case,  have  been  derived  from  a map  showing 


THE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


101 


the  Yerrazzano  discovery,  and  must  consequently  have 
been  anterior  to  the  Yerrazano  map  in  its  present 
form. 

It  militates  against  the  authenticity  of  the  Yerra- 
zano map  and  the  early  date  which  it  would  have  in- 
ferred for  itself,  that  there  is  not  a single  known  map 
or  chart,  either  published  or  unpublished,  before  the 
great  map  of  Mercator  in  1569,  that  refers  to  the 
Yerrazzano  discoveries,  or  recognizes  this  map  in  any 
respect  before  that  of  Michael  Lok,  published  by 
Hakluyt,  in  1582  ; or  any  before  Lok,  that  applies  the 
name  of  the  sea  of  Yerrazano  to  the  western  sea.  The 
unauthenticated  and  until  recently  unnoticed  globe 
of  Euphrosynus  Ulpius,  purporting  to  have  been  con- 
structed in  1542,  of  which  we  will  speak  presently,  is 
the  only  evidence  yet  presented  of  the  existence  of  the 
Yerrazano  map,  as  it  now  appears,  beyond  the  map 
itself.  The  whole  theory  of  the  early  influence  of  the 
Yerrazzano  discovery,  or  of  the  Yerrazano  map,  upon 
the  cartography  of  the  period  to  which  they  relate, 
and  its  consequently  proving  their  authenticity,  as 
advanced  by  some  learned  writers,  is  therefore  incor- 
rect and  is  founded  in  a misconception  of  fact. 

This  mistake  relates  to  a map  which  is  found  in 
several  editions  of  the  geography  of  Ptolemy  printed  at 
Basle,  supposed  to  represent  the  western  sea  shortly 
after  the  Yerrazzano  discovery,  and  consequently  as 
derived  from  that  source.  Mr.  Kohl,1  in  a chapter 
specially  devoted  to  the  consideration  of  charts  from 
Yerrazzano,  reproduces  one  (No.  xv.  a ) which  he 


1 We  are  indebted  entirely  to  Mr.  Kohl  for  our  knowledge  of  the  map  of 
Agnese,  which  he  produces,  on  a reduced  scale,  in  the  Discovery  of  Maine , 
(chart  xiv),  with  an  account  of  the  map  and  its  author  (p.  292). 


102 


VERRAZZANO. 


describes  as  a sketch  of  North  America,  from  a map 
of  the  new  world,  in  an  edition  of  Ptolemy  printed  in 
Basle,  1530.  And  he  adds:  “ the  map  was  drawn 
and  engraved  a few  years  after  Verrazano  s expedition. 
The  plate  upon  which  it  was  engraved,  must  have  been 
in  use  for  a long  time  ; for  the  same  map  appears  both 
in  earlier  and  much  later  editions  of  Ptolemy.  The 
same  also  reappears  in  the  cosmography  of  Sebastian 
Munster,  published  in  Basle.”  Mr.  K.  finally  observes 
in  regard  to  it : “ this  map  has  this  particular  interest 
for  us,  that  it  is  probably  the  first  on  which  the  sea  of 
Yerrazano  was  depicted  in  the  form  given  to  it  by  Lok, 
in  1582.  I have  found  no  map  prior  to  1530,  on  which 
this  delineation  appears.” 1 There  is  a little  confusion 
of  dates  in  this  statement.  Mr.  K.  states,  however,  that 
he  had  not  seen  the  map  of  Hieronimo  de  Yerrazano, 
and  evidently  derives  his  information,  in  regard  to 
the  sea  of  Yerrazano,  from  the  map  of  Lok,  who  alone 
gives  the  western  sea  the  name  of  Mare  de  Verrazana , 
no  doubt  because  he  found  the  sea  laid  down  on  the 
map  presented  by  Yerrazzano  to  Henry  VIII,  to  which 
reference  will  presently  be  made.  Had  Mr.  K.  seen 
the  Yerrazano  map  with  the  absurd  legend  upon  it,  in 
effect  declaring  the  western  sea  to  have  been  observed 
by  Yerrazzano,  he  must  have  arrived  at  different  conclu- 
sions, notwithstanding  the  map  in  Ptolemy  of  the  sup- 
posed early  date.  Mr.  Brevoort,  in  his  notes  on  the 
Yerrazano  map,  probably  relying  on  the  authority  of 
Mr.  Kohl,  says,  “ that  the  first  published  map  contain- 
ing traces  of  Yerrazano’ s explorations,  is  in  the  Ptolemy 
of  Basle,  1530,  which  appeared  four  years  before  the 


Discovery  of  Maine , pp.  296-7. 


TEE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


103 


French  renewed  their  attempts  at  American  exploration. 
It  shows  the  western  sea  without  a name,  and  the  land 
north  of  it  is  called  Francisca.”  1 The  inference  left  to 
be  drawn  is  that  the  presence  of  the  French  in  this 
region,  as  denoted  by  the  name,  Francisca,  four  years 
before  the  discoveries  in  that  quarter,  by  J acques  Car- 
tier,  and  by  the  delineation  of  the  western  sea  upon  the 
Verrazano  map,  establish  the  authenticity  both  of  the 
voyage  of  Yerrazzano  and  the  map. 

All  this  is  erroneous.  There  was  no  edition  of 
Ptolemy  published  in  1530  at  Basle,  or  elsewhere, 
known  to  bibliographers.  The  map  to  which  reference 
is  made,  and  which  is  reproduced  by  Mr.  Kohl,  was 
first  printed  in  1540  at  Basle,  in  an  edition  of  Ptolemy 
with  new  maps,  both  of  the  new  and  old  world,  and 
with  new  descriptions  of  the  countries  embraced  in 
them,  printed  on  the  back  of  each,  accompanied  by  a 
geographical  description  of  the  modern  state  of  the 
countries  of  the  old  world  by  Sebastian  Munster.2  In 
all  the  editions  of  Ptolemy,  containing  maps  of  the 
new  world,  before  the  year  1540,  North  America  was 
represented  according  to  the  mistaken  ideas  of  Waltze- 
miiller  on  that  subject  in  1513,  and  without  regard  to 
the  discoveries  which  took  place  after  his  edition.  The 
maps  of  Munster  constituted  a new  departure  of  the 
Ptolemies  in  this  respect,  and  were  intended  to  repre- 
sent the  later  discoveries  in  the  new  world.  They  were 
reprinted  several  times  at  Basle  by  the  same  printer, 

1 Journal  of  Am.  Geog.  Soc.  of  New  York,  vol.  iy,  p.  279. 

2 Geographia  Universalis , vetus  et  nova,  complectens  Glaudii  Ptotemcei  Alex- 
andrini  enarrationis  libros  vhi.  * * * 8 'uccedunt  tabulae  Ptolemaice , opera 
Sebastiani  Munsteri  nouo  paratce  modo.  His  adjectoe  sunt  plurime  nouce 
tabulae , modernd  orbis  faciem  literis  & pictura  explicantes , inter  quas  qucedam 
antehac  Ptolemceo  non  fuerunt  additae.  Sm.  fol.  Basitese  apud  Henricum 
Petrum  Mense  Martio  Anno  mdxl. 


104 


VERRAZZANO. 


Henri  Pierre  (Lelewell  n.  176,  208).  In  the  first 
edition,  which  is  now  lying  before  us,  the  map  in  ques- 
tion, number  45,  bears  the  title  of  Novce  Insalce  xvn. 
Nova  Tabula.  It  is  an  enlarged  representation  of  the 
portion  relating  to  the  new  world  of  another  map,  No. 
1,  in  the  same  volume,  called  Typus  Universalis , a map 
of  the  whole  world,  which  appears  here  also  as  a new 
map,  and  represents,  for  the  first  time  in  the  Ptolemaic 
series,  the  straits  of  Magellan  in  the  south,  New  France 
in  the  north,  and  the  coast  running  continuously,  north 
and  northeast , from  Florida  to  Newfoundland. 

Upon  this  map  a deep  gulf  is  shown,  indenting 
America  from  a strait  in  the  north,  which  leads  from 
the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific,  in  the  region  of  Hudson’s 
straits,  in  latitude  60°  N.  This  gulf  runs  southerly 
into  the  continent  as  far  as  latitude  40°  N.,  approaching 
the  Atlantic  coast,  and  in  that  respect,  alone,  conforms 
to  the  representation  of  the  western  sea  on  the  maps 
of  Yerrazano  and  Lok.  It  differs  materially,  however, 
from  that  sea,  and  indicates  an  entirely  different  mean- 
ing and  origin.  It  is  simply  a gulf,  or  deep  bay,  like 
Hudson’s  bay,  but  reaching  further  south,  being  land- 
locked on  all  sides,  except  the  north,  as  high  as  lati- 
tude 60°  N. ; whereas  the  western  sea,  on  the  other 
maps,  is,  as  already  observed,  an  open  sea,  extending 
westerly  from  the  isthmus  in  latitude  40°,  without 
intervening  land,  uninterruptedly  to  India.  The  in- 
tention of  the  delineation  of  this  portion  of  the  map,  is 
not  equivocal.  For  the  first  time,  on  any  map,  there 
is  found  upon  it  the  name  of  Francisca,  which  is 
placed  above  the  parallel  of  50°  N.  latitude  and  above 
that  of  G.  Britonum,  designated  thus  by  name,  in  the 
proper  position  of  Cape  Breton.  It  is  placed  between 


THE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


105 


the  river  St.  Lawrence,  which  also  is  represented  but 
not  named,  and  the  gulf  before  mentioned.  This  name, 
Francisca,1  or  the  French  land , and  the  position,  indi- 
cate the  then  recent  discoveries  in  that  region,  which 
were  due  to  the  French  under  Jacques  Cartier,  and 
which  could  properly  belong  to  no  other  exploration  of 
the  French.  The  gulf,  no  doubt,  relates  to  the  great  lakes 

or  fresh  water  sea  of  which  Cartier  had  heard  from  the 

# 

natives,  as  he  himself  mentions.  (Hakluyt,  hi.  225.) 

With  the  correction,  therefore;  of  the  date  of  the 
Munster  map,  the  argument  in  favor  of  the  authenticity 
either  of  the  Ye rrazzano  discovery  or  of  the  Yerrazano 
map,  based  upon  the  recognition  by  the  Munster  map, 
of  that  discovery  immediately  after  it  is  alleged  to 
have  taken  place,  or  after  the  alleged  construction  of 
the  Yerrazano  map,  in  1529,  and  before  any  other  voy- 
ages were  made  by  the  French  to  that  region,  falls 
entirely  to  the  ground.  And  with  the  actual  represent- 
ation upon  it  of  the  discoveries  of  Cartier,  without  any 
allusion  to  the  alleged  discoveries  of  Yerrazzano  or 
the  pretensions  of  the  Yerrazano  map,  while  giving 
the  latest  discoveries  in  America,  it  is  fairly  to  be  con- 
cluded that  both  were  unheard  of,  or  utterly  discredited 
by  the  author  of  the  Munster  map. 

The  map  of  Agnese  stands,  therefore,  as  the  earliest 
* chart  of  an  acknowledged  date  showing  the  western 
sea,  and  that  is  independently  of  the  Yerrazzano  dis- 
covery, or  the  Yerrazano  map.  The  hitherto  un- 
published maps  produced  by  Mr.  Kohl,  also  for  the 
purpose  of  proving  the  influence  of  the  Yerrazzano 
discovery,  fail  entirely  of  that  object.  The  first  of  them, 

1 Called  Francese  in  the  discourse  of  the  French  captain  of  Dieppe. 

14 


106 


VERRAZZANO. 


in  point  of  date,  the  sketch  (No.  xv,  c)  from  the 
portolano  of  1536,  preserved  in  the  Bodleian  library  at 
Oxford,  shows  a track  of  navigation  from  the  north  of 
France,  across  the  Atlantic,  running  between  the  Baca- 
laos  and  the  land  of  the  Bretons , through  the  gulf  of 
St.  Lawrence , to  the  Pacific,  and  thence  to  Cathay.  There 
is  no  representation  of  the  western  sea,  as  shown 
on  the  Verrazano  map,  but  on  the  contrary,  the  whole 
of  the  western  coast  of  North  America  is  shown  con- 
jecturally  in  a different  form,  by  dotted  lines.  So  far 
as  this  map  affords  any  indication  on  the  subject,  it 
refers  to  the  route  of  Cartier,  and  delineates  the  At- 
lantic coast  according  to  the  Spanish  map  of  Ribero, 
that  is,  with  a trending  of  the  coast  in  a more  north- 
erly direction  than  the  Verrazano  map,  and  with  the 
peculiar  return  of  that  coast  westerly,  in  latitude  40° 
N.,  given  on  that  map.  The  next  chart  (No.  xv.  d) 
from  a map  made  by  Diego  Homem  in  1540,  shows 
the  western  sea  nearly  the  same  as  on  the  map  of 
Agnese,  but  conjecturally  only;  while  the  representa- 
tion of  the  Atlantic  coast  has  the  same  characteristics 
as  the  Bodleian  and  Agnese  maps,  showing  its  deriva- 
tion from  Ribero  and  not  the  Verrazano  map.  The 
remaining  sketch  given  by  Mr.  Kohl  (No.  xv.  bj  from 
a map  made  by  G.  Ruscelli*  in  1544,  presenting  the 
same  features,  as  do  the  two  others,  in  regard  to  the  * 
Atlantic  coast,  puts  beyond  all  question  that  the  map 
of  Ribero  is  its  authority,  by  adopting  from  it  the  name 
of  Montagne  Verde  which  is  applied  by  Ribero  to  the 
hills  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  San  Antonio,  in  latitude 
41°  N.,  thereby  certainly  excluding  any  recognition 
of  the  Verrazzano  discovery  or  the  Verrazano  map. 


THE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


107 


The  first  published  map  which  refers  to  the  Verraz- 
zano  discoveries,  that  of  Mercator  in  1569,  makes  no 
reference  to  the  Verrazano  map,  and  does  not  recog- 
nize it  in  any  manner.  Mercator  was  the  first  to  give 
the  name  of  Claudia  to  the  island  of  Louise,  evidently 
mistaking  the  name  of  the  wife  of  Francis  for  that  of 
his  mother,  after  whom  the  island  was  called,  accord- 
ing to  the  letter,  without  stating  her  name.  Mercator 
gives  a legend  in  which  he  mentions  that  Yerrazzano 
arrived  on  the  coast  on  the  17th  of  March  1524,  which 
is  the  day  according  to  the  version  of  Ramusio,  fol- 
lowing our  mode  of  computation,  as  before  explained. 
It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  Mercator  had  the  Ramu- 
sio version  before  him,  and  not  the  Verrazano  map,  as 
his  authority  on  the  subject.  His  delineation  of  the 
Atlantic  coast,  moreover,  is  according  to  the  plan  of 
Ribero,  and  he  gives  no  indication  of  the  western  sea 
of  the  Verrazano  map,  but  mentions  in  a legend  the 
fresh  water  inland  sea  spoken  of  by  Cartier,  of  the  ex- 
tent of  which  the  Indians  were  ignorant. 

The  existence  of  the  Verrazano  map,  much  less  its 
date,  is  obviously  not  proven  by  any  of  the  maps  or 
charts  to  which  reference  has  here  been  made,  and 
which  are  supposed  to  reflect  some  of  its  features,  or 
indicate  the  verity  of  the  Verrazzano  discovery.  There 
is,  however,  some  evidence  of  a positive  character,  both 
historical  and  cartographical,  which  points  to  the  ex-* 
istence  of  this  map  in  two  different  forms,  one  origin- 
ally not  representing  the  Verrazzano  discovery,  and  the 
other  subsequently,  as  now  presented. 

The  existence  of  a Verrazano  map  in  some  form  or 
other,  as  early  as  1537,  seems  to  be  established  by  a 


108 


VERRAZZANO. 


letter  of  the  commendatory,  Annibal  Caro,  written  in 
that  year.  Caro,  who  became  distinguished  among  his 
countrymen  for  his  polite  learning,  was,  in  early  life, 
secretary  to  the  cardinal,  M.  de  Gaddi,  a Florentine, 
residing  in  Rome.  While’  thus  engaged,  he  accom- 
panied his  patron  on  a journey  to  the  mines  of  Sicily, 
and  there,  from  Castro,  addressed  a playful  letter  to 
the  members  generally  of  the  cardinal’s  household, 
remaining  at  Rome.  In  this  letter,  which  is  dated 
the  13th  of  October  in  that  year,  he  writes  to  them  : 
“ I will  address  sometimes  one  and  sometimes  another 
of  you,  as  matters  come  into  my  mind.  To  you,  Yer- 
razzano, a seeker  of  new  worlds  and  their  marvels,  I 
cannot  yet  say  anything  worthy  of  your  map , because 
we  have  not  passed  through  any  country  which  has 
not  been  discovered  by  you  or  your  brother.” 1 This 
passage  was  supposed  by  Tiraboschi  to  have  been  ad- 
dressed to  the  navigator,  and  as  proving  that  he  was 
alive  at  the  time  the  letter  was  written.  But  we  now 
know  that  Yerrazzano  had  then  been' dead  ten  year£; 
besides,  it  is  not  probable,  inasmuch  as  the  person 
addressed  was  one  of  the  servants  of  the  prelate,  that 
the  navigator  would  have  occupied  that  position.  * M. 
Arcangeli  suggests  that  the  name  is  used  by  Caro 
merely  as  a nom  de  guerre  ;2  but  in  either  case,  whether 
borrowed  or  not,  the  remark  plainly  enough  refers  to 
a Yerrazzano  map,  which  may  possibly  have  been  the 
map  of  Hieronimo. 

1 j De  le  lettre  familiari  del  commendatore  Annibal  Caro,  vol.  i.  p.  6-7. 
Venetia  1581. 

2 Discorso  Sopra  Giovanni  da  Yerrazzano , p.  27,  in  Archivio  Storico 
Italiano,  Appendice  vol.  ix. 


THE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


109 


Hakluyt  furnishes  testimony  which,  if  correct,  shows 
the  probable  existence  of  this  map  before  1529,  but 
viot  in  its  present  form . In  the  dedication  to  Phillip 
Sydney  of  his  “Divers  voyages  touching  the  discoveries 
of  America,  &c.,”  printed  in  1582,  he  refers  to  the  proba- 
bilities’of  the  existence  of  a northwest  passage,  and 
remarks  that,  “Master  John  Verarzanus  which  had 
been  tlirise  on  that  coast  in  an  olde  excellent  mappe, 
which  he  gave  to  King  Henry  the  eight,  and  is  yet  in 
custodie  of  Master  Locke,  doth  so  lay  it  out  as  is  to  bee 
seene  in  the  mappe  annexed  to  the  end  of  this  boke, 
being  made  according  to  Yerarzanus  plat.”  Hakluyt 
thus  positively  affirms  that  the  old  map  to  which  he 
refers  was  given  by  Yerrazzano  himself  to  the  king. 
What  evidence  he  had  of  that  fact  he  does  not  men- 
tion, but  he  speaks  of  the  map  as  if  it  had  been  seen 
by  him,  and  probably  that  was  his  authority.  The 
map  he  declares  of  his  own  knowledge  was  transferred, 
so  far  as  regards  the  western  strait,  to  the  map  of  Lok, 
which  he  himself  publishes.  Lok’s  map  represents  the 
northwest  passage  as  attempted  by  Frobisher  in  his 
several  voyages,-  and  as  continued  from  the  termina- 
tion of  the  English  exploration,  to  a western  sea,  a 
portion  of  which  lying  between  the  parallels  of  40°  N. 
and  50°  N.  latitude  is  laid  down  the  same  as  it  appears 
on  the  Yerrazano  map,  and  bears  the  inscription  of 
Mare  de  Verramna  1524.  The  map  of  Lok  is  the  first 
one  upon  which  the  western  sea  is  so  called.  The 
designation  was  undoubtedly  the  work  of  Lok  himself, 
as  it  is  in  conformity  with  his  practice  in  other  parts 
of  the  map,  where  he  denotes  the  discoveries  of  others 
in  the  same  way,  that  is,  by  their  names  with  the 


110 


VERRAZZANO. 


dates  of  their  voyages  annexed.  He  no  doubt  applied 
the  name  of  Yerrazzano  to  this  ocean  from  finding 
it  represented  on  the  old  map  given  by  Yerrazzano 
to  the  king,  and  obtained  the  date  from  the  letter,  of 
which  Hakluyt  printed  in  the  same  volume  a transla- 
tion from  the  version  in  Kamusio.  It  is  certain  that 
Yerrazzano  could  not  have  been  accessory  to  declaring 
it  a discovery  by  himself  for  the  reason  already  men- 
tioned that  no  such  sea,  as  there  laid  down,  existed  to 
have  been  discovered. 

Lok’s  map  represents  on  the  Atlantic  coast,  in  lati- 
tude 41°  N.,  the  island  alleged  in  the  Yerrazzano  letter 
to  have  been  named  after  the  king’s  mother,  and  gives 
it  the  name  of  Claudia.  That  it  is  the  same  island  is 
proven  by  note  to  the  translation  of  the  letter  given  in 
the  volume  in  which  this  map  is  found.  Hakluyt 
puts  in  the  margin,  opposite  the  passage  where  mention 
of  the  island  occurs  in  the  letter,  the  words  “ Claudia 
Ilande.”  From  whatever  source  this  name  was  derived 
by  them,  whether  from  Mercator  or  by  their  own  mis- 
take, both  Lok  and  Hakluyt  here  indirectly  bear  their 
testimony  to  the  fact,  that  the  name  of  Luisia  was 
not  upon  the  old  map  given  to  Henry  YIII,  which  Lok‘ 
consulted,  and  Hakluyt,  described.  It  is  thus  to  be 
concluded  that  the  map  delivered  to  the  king  showed 
the  western  sea,  but  not  any  discoveries  of  Yerrazzano 
on  the  Atlantic  coast. 

In  another  work,  as  yet  unpublished,  Hakluyt 
affords  some  additional  information  in  regard  to  the 
old  map,  which  though  brief,  is  quite  significant.  He 
remarks  that  it  is  “a  mightie  large  olde  mappe  in  parch- 
ment, made  as  it  should  seem  by  Yerrazanus,  now  in  the 


THE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


Ill 


custodie  of  Mr.  Michael  Locke ; ” and  he  speaks  also 
of  an  “olde  excellent  globe  in  the  Queen’s  privie  gallery, 
at  Westm’r,  w’h  also  seemeth  to  be  of  Yerrazanus  mak- 
ing.”1 Both  the  map  and  the  globe  are  thus  men- 
tioned as  the  probable  workmanship  of  Yerrazzano,  from 
which  it  is  probable  that  there  was  no  name  upon  them 
to  determine  that  question  positively.  The  great  size 
of  the  chart,  the  material  upon  which  it  was  made,  and 
the  authorship  of  the  map  and  globe  by  the  same  per- 
son, are  circumstances  which  go  to  prove  that  they 
were  both  the  work  of  a professed  cosmographer,  and 
embraced  the  whole  world  ; and  consequently  that  the 
map  was  not  a chart  made  by  the  navigator,  showing 
his  discoveries,  but  possibly  the  map  of  Hieronimo  in 
its  original  form.  The  construction  of  this  old  map, 
whoever*  was  the  author,  is  fixed  certainly  before  1529, 
by  the  statement  of  Hakluyt,  that  it  was  presented  to 
Henry  YIIX  by  Yerrazzano,  the  navigator,  inasmuch 
as  Yerrazzano  came  to  his  death  in  1527.  The  Yer- 
razano  map,  in  its  present  phase,  not  claiming  to  have 
been  made  before  the  year  1529,  could  not,  therefore, 
have  furnished  the  original  representation  of  the  west- 
ern sea,  or  have  been  the  one  used  by  Lok. 

Hakluyt  adds  to  his  statement  that  Yerrazzano  had 
been  three  times  on  the  coast  of  America,  which,  if 
true, 'would  disprove  the  discovery  set  up  in  the  letter. 
That  document  alleges  that  the  coast  explored  by  him 
was  entirely  unknown  and  had  never  before  been  seen 
by  any  one  before  that  voyage,  and  consequently  not  by 
him ; and  that,  as  regards  the  residue  of  the  coast  north 

1 MS.  in  possession  of  the  Maine  Historical  Society,  cited  in  Mr.  Kohl’s 
Discovery  of  Maine,  p.  291,  note. 


112 


VERRAZZANO. 


4 

of  50°  N.,  the  Portuguese  had  sailed  along  it  as  far  as 
the  Arctic  circle,  without  finding  any  termination . to 
the  land,  thus  giving  the  Portuguese  as  his  authority 
for  the  continuity  of  the  northern  part  of  the  coast, 
and  excluding  himself  from  it.  It  is  thus  clearly  stated 
in  the  letter,  that  he  had  not  been  there  before.  It 
was  impossible  that  he  could  have  consummated  two 
voyages  to  America,  and  another  to  England,  and 
made  his  court  to  the  king,  after  1524,  and  before  his 
last  and  fatal  cruize  along  the  coast  of  Spain,  as  would 
have  been  necessary  to  have  been  done.  In  asserting 
that  Yerrazzano  made  other  voyages  to  America,  Hak- 
luyt is  corroborated  by  the  ancient  manuscripts,  to 
wrhich  the  author  of  the  memoirs  of  Dieppe  refers,  as 
mentioning  that  one  Jean  Verassen  commanded  a 
ship  which  accompanied  that  of  Aubert  to  Newfound- 
land in  1508. 1 It  is  possible,  therefore,  that  Yerraz- 
zano made  three  voyages  to  Newfoundland,  and  was 
well  acquainted  with  that  portion  of  the  coast,  before 
hostilities  broke  out  between  Francis  I.  and  the 
emperor,  in  1522 ; at  which  time,  as  will  be  seen,  he 
entered  upon  his  course  of  privateering  ; and  that  dur- 
ing the  time  Francis  was  a prisoner  at  Madrid,  in 
1525-6,  and  the  state  of  war  accordingly  suspended, 
and  Yerrazzano  thrown  out  of  employment,  he  visited 
England,  and  laid  before  the  king  a scheme  of  search- 
ing for  the  northwest  passage  ; a project  which  Henry 
had  been  long  meditating,  as  may  be  gathered  from 

1 Desmarquets.  Memoir es  Ghronologiques  your  servir  a V histoire  de 
Dieppe , i.  100.  (2  Vols.  Paris,  1785.)  It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  this 
annalist  seems  to  regard  Verassen  and  Yerrazzano  as  different  persons, 
which  proves,  at  least,  that  his  authority  was  independent  of  any  matter 
connected  with  the  Verrazzano  claim.  That  these  names  really  relate, 
however,  to  the  same  individual,  appears  from  the  agreement  with  Chabot 


THE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


113 


the  proposition  of  Wolsey  to  Sebastian  Cabot  in  1519, 
and  the  expedition  actually  sent  out  for  that  purpose 
by  that  monarch  under  John  Rut,  in  1527.1  It  is  evi- 
dent that  the  representation  of  the  western  sea,  upon 
the  map  given  to  the  king,  was  merely'  conjectural  of 
its  existence  in  connection  with  the  supposed  strait, 
laid  down  upon  the  map,  according  to  Hakluyt.  This 
explanation  will  serve  also  to  account  most  readily  for 
the  partial  knowledge  which  the  letter  exhibits,  in 
regard  to  the  customs  and  characteristics  of  the  Indians 
of  Cape  Breton,  which  might  have  been  collected  by  the 
writer,  from  the  journals  of  those  early  voyages  or 
other  notes  of  Yerrazzanoin  relation  to  them;  although 
the  same  information  was  obtainable  from  others  who 
had  made  similar  voyages  to  that  region,  from  Nor- 
mandy and  Brittany. 

It  is  thus  established  by  the  same  testimony  which 
furnishes  the  map  of  Lok,  taken  in  conjunction  with 
its  own  teachings,  that  it  was  not  derived  from  the 
Verrazano  map.  in  its  present  shape,  and  does  not 
represent  the  Verrazzano  discovery. 

The  only  evidence  of  the  existence  of  the  Yerra- 
zano  map  in  any  cosmographical  production  whatever, 
book,  chart  or  globe,  so  far  as  known,  independently 
of  its  history  in  the  Borgian  collection,  is  a copper 
globe  found  by  the  late  Buckingham  Smith  in  Spain, 
a few  years  ago,  and  now  in  the  possession  of  the  New 
York  Historical  Society.  This  globe  purports  to  have 
been  constructed  by  Euphrosynus  Ulpius  in  1542. 

1 Letter  of  Contarini,  the  Venetian  ambassador  in  Spain,  to  the  Council 
of  Ten.  See  Calendar  of  Slate  Papers  &c.  in  Venice , 1520-6.  Edited  by 
Rawdon  Brown.  No.  607.  London,  1869.  Purchas,  hi.  p.  809. 

15 


114 


VERRAZZANO. 


Inscribed  upon  it,  in  a separate  scroll,  is  a dedication, 
in  these  words  : “ Marcello  Cervino  S.  R.  E.  Presbitero 
Cardinali  D.D.  Rome.”  Cervinus  had  been  archbishop 
of  Florence  and  was  afterwards  raised  from  the  cardi- 
nalate  to  the  pontificate  under  the  title  of  Marcellus  II. 
This  globe  represents  the  western  sea  in  the  same  form 
as  it  is  on  the  Yerrazano  map,  and  contains  a legend 
on  the  country  lying  between  the  isthmus  and  Cape 
Breton,  in  these  words  :*  Verrazana  sive  Nova  Gallia  a 
Verrazano  Florentino  Gomperta  anno  sal.  M.D.  In  all 
other  respects  it  differs  essentially  from  the  map  in  its 
description  of  the  coast.  Florida  and  Cape  Breton  are 
laid  down  in  their  true  positions,  and  the  isthmus 
occurs  at  the  parallel  of  33°  N.  latitude,  instead  of  41°. 
The  direction  of  the  coast,  between  the  two  points  just 
mentioned,  is  more  northerly,  and  the  length  of  it  con- 
sequently much  reduced.  The  names  along  the  coast, 
so  far  as  the  photograph  of  the  map  furnishes  the 
means  of  comparison,  are  entirely  different,  except 
that  Piaggia  de  Calami  appears  north  of  the  isthmus. 
Dieppa  and  Livorno  are  not  ‘found  upon  it.  But  the 
legend  affords  indubitable  evidence  that  the  maker  had 
consulted  the  map.  The  name  of  Verrazana  applied 
to  the  land  is  found  no  where  else  so  applied,  except  on 
the  map.  But  the  incompleteness  in  which  the  date 
of  the  discovery  is  left,  as  if  written  15 — , proves 
that  the  maker  was  unable  to  ascertain  it  fully  from 
his  authority  ; the  map,  therefore,  must  have  been  his 
sole  authority. 

As  to  the  authenticity  of  this  globe  there  is  no  other 
evidence  than  that  it  has  the  appearance  of  an  old 
instrument,  and  its  representations  generally  corre- 


THE  VERRAZANO  MAP. 


115 


spond  with  the  state  of  geographical  knowledge  of  the 
period  of  its  date.1  Adopting  its  own  story  of  its  con- 
struction, it  proves  the  existence  of  the  Yerrazano 
map,  with  the  Yerrazzano  discoveries  upon  it,  and 
consequently  the  existence  of  the  claim  as  early  as  the 
year  1542. 

The  other  references  to  a Yerrazzano  map,  prove 
nothing  on  the  subject  of  the  discoveries,  unless  the 
letter  of  Annibal  Caro,  which  alludes  to  discoveries  by 
the  brothers  Yerrazzani,  in  connection  with  a map,  be 
deemed  as  referring  to  them.  In  that  case,  1537 
would  be  the  earliest  mention  of  them  in  any  known 
publication.  Lok  and  Hakluyt,  as  has  been  already 
seen,  clearly  do  not  refer  to  any  map  showing  the 
Yerrazzano  discoveries.  The  period  of  the  fabrication 
of  the  letter  may  therefore,  possibly,  be  fixed  between 
1536  and  1542.  But  whether  this  period  be  properly 
deduced  or  not,  is  immaterial ; since  in  no  event  can 
an  earlier  date  than  1529  be  assigned  by  any  evidence 
outside  of  the  letter,  for  the  existence  of  the  Yerrazzano 
claim ; which  year,  as  is  now  to  be  shown,  was  long 
after  the  coast  had  been  discovered  and  made  known 
to  the  world  by  another. 

1 It  measures  forty-two  inches  in  circumference.  Hist.  Mag.  (New 
York)  1862,  p.  202.-  A map  showing  so  much  of  it  as  relates  to  North 
America,  was  lithographed  for  the  dissertation  of  Mr.  Smith,  and  is  here 
reproduced. 


116 


VERRAZZANO. 


IX. 

The  Letter  to  the  King  founded  on  the  Discoveries 
of  Estevan  Gomez.  The  History  of  Gomez  and  his 
Voyage.  The  Publication  of  his  Discoveries  in  Spain 
and  Italy  before  the  Verrazzano  claim.  The  Voy- 
age DESCRIBED  IN  THE  LETTER  TRACED  TO  RlBERO’s  Map 

of  the  Discoveries  of  Gomez. 

In  the  proofs  adduced,  outside  of  the  letter  addressed 
to  the  king,  no  direct  evidence  appears  in  regard  to  the 
discovery.  There  is  no  testimony  to  be  found  of 
any  one  who  took  part  in  the  setting  forth  or  equip- 
ment of  the  expedition,  or  in  the  prosecution  of  the 
voyage,  or  who  was  personally  cognizant  of  the  return 
of  the  Dauphiny.  No  chart  or  private  letter,  no  declar- 
ation or  statement  of  the  navigator,  in  regard  to  the 
extraordinary  discovery  achieved  by*  him,  is  produced 
or  mentioned,  although  he  belonged  to  a family  of 
some  note  in  Tuscany,  which  still  existed  in  the  pre- 
sent century.  In  this  respect,  Italy,  the  birth  place  and 
home  of  Verrazzano,  is  as  blank  and  barren  as  France. 
All  that  is  really  shown  of  any  pertinency  is  the  single 
circumstance,  that  possibly  the  claim  to  the  discovery 
was  advanced  in  Italy,  and  in  that  country  alone,  at  the 
time  of  the  construction  of  the  globe  of  Ulpius  in  1542, 
but  not  anterior  to  the  year  1529,  or  until  five  years 
after  the  event,  when,  according  to  the  Verrazano 
map,  if  that  be  accepted  as  genuine  in  its  present  form? 


THE  LETTER  FOUNDED  ON  THE  VOYAGE  OF  GOMEZ.  117 

and  the  most  favorable  construction  be  upon  its  am- 
biguous legend,  of  which  that  inscription  is  capable, 
the  claim  was  for  the  first  time  announced.  And  thus 
there  is  nothing  showing  that  the  letter  or  its  preten- 
sions were  known  before  the  last  named  year.  In 
view  of  this  important  fact,  and  the  absence  of  any 
evidence  whatsoever  corroborative  of  the  letter  cfr  its 
contents,  it  is  not  unreasonable  to  believe  that  the 
letter  was  an  attempt  to  appropriate  to  the  Florentine 
the  glory  which  belonged  to  Estevan  Gomez,  a Portu- 
guese pilot,  who  actually  discovered  and  explored  this 
coast,  in  1525,  in  the  service  of  the  emperor,  Charles 
Y,  and  whose  voyage  and  exploration  were  immedi- 
ately thereupon  made  known,  both  in  Spain  and  Italy. 
That  such,  indeed,  was  the  source  from  which  the 
Verrazzano  letter  was  derived  is  susceptible  of  demon- 
stration; and  for  that  purpose  some  account  of  the 
voyage  and  discoveries  of  Gomez  and  their  publication 
becomes  necessary. 

Gomez,  who  was  born  in  Oporto  and  reared  there  to 
a sea-faring  life,  for  some  reason,  unexplained,  left 
Portugal  and  entered  into  the  Spanish  service,  in  which 
he  was  appointed  pilot  in  1518,  at  the  same  time  that 
Sebastian  Cabot  was  created  pilot  major  in  the  same 
service.  He  proposed  immediately  to  the  king,  to  go 
in  search  of  a new  route  to  the  Moluccas  or  Spice 
islands  recently  discovered  by  the  Portuguese,  and 
which,  he  affirmed,  were  within  the  limits  assigned  to 
Spain  by  the  line  of  demarkation.  He  exhibited  a chart 
constructed  by  him  showing  this  fact,1  from  which  it 
may  be  inferred  that  he  had  already  made  a voyage  to 


1 Cespedes,  Regimiento  de  Navigation,  148. 


118 


VERRAZZANO. 


those  islands.  The  way  which  he  proposed  then  to  take 
is-  not  mentioned.  At  the  same  juncture  Magellan  also 
arrived  in  Spain  and  tendered  his  services  to  find  a 
new  route  to  the  Moluccas,  specifically  by  the  west,  as 
delineated  on  a globe  which  he  produoed.  Magellan 
prevailed  in  his  suit,  which  was  the  reason,  according 
to  P%afetta,  the  historian  of  the  expedition,  that  the 
emperor  did  not  give  Gomez  any  caravels  to  discover 
new  lands.1  It  is  to  be  inferred,  therefore,  that  the  first 
route  proposed  by  Gomez  was  not  by  the  west.  The 
fleet  of  Magellan  set  sail  on  his  expedition  in  September 
1519,  with  Gomez  as  chief  pilot,  an  arrangement  in- 
tended to  conciliate  and  combine  both  interests;  but 
it  was  not  a h§ippy  one.  Actuated,  it  is  charged,  by 
a spirit  of  jealousy  and  a desire  to  embarrass  Magellan 
and  render  his  voyage  abortive,  Gomez  at  the  very 
moment  that  success  was  assured,  and  the  fleet  was 
entering  the  strait  which  led  into  the  Pacific,  aban- 
doned his  commander;  and  profiting  by  the  opportunity 
which  was  offered  him  in  being  detached  by  Magellan 
with  the  San  Antonio,  one  of  the  ships,  to  make  a 
reconnoissance  in  another  direction,  joined  with  cer- 
tain mutineers,  seized  the  captain  of  that  vessel,  and 
returned  with  her  to  Spain,  arriving  there  in  March 
1521.  The  reasons  assigned  by  him  for  this  desertion 
of  the  expedition,  were  the  severity  of  the  treatment 
of  the  crew  by  Magellan,  a want  of  provisions  and  the 
unseaworthiness  of  the  San  Antonio.  He  was,  how- 
ever, held  by  the  council  of  the  Indies  to  answer  to  any 
charges  which  might  be  preferred  against  him  by 
Magellan  on  his  return,  and  in  the  meantime  his  pay 


1 Prmo  Viafjrjw,  38. 


THE  LETTER  FOUNDED  ON  THE  YOYAGE  OF  GOME2J.  119 

was  sequestered  and  his  property  on  board  the  ship  at- 
tached. In  September  1522,  the  Victoria,  the  only 
ship  of  Magellan’s  squadron  which  succeeded  in  return- 
ing to  Spain,  arrived  with  the  news  of  Magellan’s  dis- 
covery, and  also  of  his  death  in  a conflict  with  the 
natives  of  the  island  of  Tidore.  Upon  this  information 
proceedings  against  Gomez  were  discontinued  and  his 
property  released. 

The  success  of  Magellan  served  the  more  to  stimu- 
late the  purpose  of  Gomez  to  undertake  a search  for 
the  same  object.  It  was  supposed  at  that  time,  by 
• Sebastian  Cabot  and  others,  that  the  northern  parts  of 
America  were  broken  up  into  islands,  but  nothing 
positively  was  known  in  relation  to  them,  except  in 
the  region  of  Newfoundland.  Between  that  country  and 
South  Carolina,  then  recently  discovered  by  the  joint 
expedition  of  the  licentiates,  all  was  unknown ; and 
it  was  considered  not  improbable  that  a passage  might 
be  found  between  those  points,  through  to  Cathay  and 
the  Moluccas,  the  same  as  had  been  discovered  in  the 
south,  by  Magellan.  Gomez,  released  from  his  dis- 
abilities, renewed  his  application  to  the  emperor  for 
permission  to  prosecute  his  search,  proposing  now  to 
make  it  through  the  northern  seas;  and  on  the  27th 
of  August  1523  a cedule  was  made  to  that  effect  au- 
thorizing him  to  go  with  a caravel  of  fifty  toneles  bur- 
den “ on  the  discovery  of  eastern  Cathay.1  In  conse- 
quence, however,  of  the  remonstrance  of  the  king  of 
Portugal  against  any  interference  with  his  rights  to 
the  Moluccas,  Charles  suspended  the  prosecution  of 
further  voyages  in  that  quarter  until  the  question 


1 Herrera,  hi.  iv.  20.  The  cedule  is  still  extant  in  the  archives  at  Seville. 


120 


VERRAZZANO. 


should  be  determined  to  which  of  the  two  crowns  those 
islands  belonged  by  virtue  of  the  pope’s  demarcation. 
The  voyage  of  Gomez,  and  also  that  of  Cabot  to  the  La 
Plata,  were  delayed  until  the  decision  of  the  junta  con- 
vened at  Badajos  by  the  twomonarchs  for  the  purpose 
of  making  this  determination.  To  this  body  Gomez, 
in  conjunction  with  Sebastian  Cabot  and  Juan  Ves- 
pucci as  pilots,  and  Diego  Ribero  as  cartographer, 
was  attached, — a circumstance  which  shows  the  high 
estimation  in  which  his  nautical  knowledge  was  held. 
Its  proceedings  closed  in  May  1524,  too  late  for 
Gomez  to  make  his  arrangements  to  leave  in  that 
year.  These  were  completed,  however,  in  February 
1525,  in  which  month  he  set  sail  from  Coruna, 
in  the  north  of  Spain,  in  a single  caravel,  on  his 
voyage  of*  discovery.1  Peter  Martyr,  after  mention- 
ing the  proposed  expedition  of  Sebastian  Cabot  to  the 
south,  thus  refers  in  July  1524,  to  that  of  Gomez  and 
its  destination.  “ It  is  also  decreed  that  one  Stephanus 
Gomez,  who  also  himselfe  is  a skillful  navigator,  shal 
goe  another  way,  whereby,  betweene  the  Baccalaos  and 
Florida,  long  since  our  countries,  he  saith  he  -will 
finde  out  a waye  to  Cataia : one  onely  shippe,  called 
a Carvell,  is  furnished  for  him,  and  he  shall  have  no 
other  thing  in  charge  then  to  search  out  whether  any 
passage  to  the  great  Chan,  from  out  the  diuers  wind- 
ings and  vast  compassings  of  this  our  Ocean , were  to* 
be  founde.” 2 

Gomez  commenced  -his  exploration  on  the  coast  of 
South  Carolina,  and  proceeding  thence  northwardly, 
reached  the  Rio  de  la  buelta , where,  as  that  name  de- 

1 Navarrete  m.  179.  Peter  Martyr,  Dec.  yiii.  8. 

a Peter  Martyr,  Dec.  vi.  10.  Eden's  trans. 


THE  LETTER  FOUNDED  ON  THE  VOYAGE  OF  GOMEZ.  121 

notes,  he  commenced  his  return,  on  the  island  of  Cape 
Breton.  He  carefully  observed  the  rivers,  capes  and 
bays,  which  occur  within  those  limits,  entering  the 
Chesapeake,  Delaware,  Hudson  and  Penobscot,  to 
which  he  gave  appropriate  names,  derived  from  the 
church  calendar,  or  from  some  characteristic  of  the 
locality.  He  was  for  a while  encouraged  to  believe, 
in  consequence  of  the  great  flood  of  water  which  he 
found  issuing  from  the  Penobscot,  or  Rio  de  Gamos , 
(Stag  river),  that  he  had  there  fallen  upon  the  desired 
strait.  Though  unsuccessful  in  the  object  of  his  search, 
he  nevertheless  accomplished  an  important  service  for 
geographical  science,  in  determining  that  no  such 
passage  existed  within  the  region  he  had  sailed.  Tak- 
ing in  a cargo  of  Indians  from  the  islands  of  the 
great  bay,  he  continued  his  course  to  the  south,  and 
running  along  the  coast  of  Florida,  returned  to  Spain 
by  way  of  Cuba.1 

The  authenticity  of  this  voyage  is  established  by 
Oviedo  and  Peter  Martyr  both  of  whom  were  eyewit- 
nesses of  the  Indians  which  Gomez  brought  home  and 
exhibited  at  Toledo.  Both  of  these  writers  have  given 
short  accounts  of  the  voyage,  which,  as  it  was  not  suc- 
cessful in  the  purpose  for  which  it  was  undertaken  and 
promised  no  returns  of  gold,  excited  no  public  attention. 
The  results  were,  however,  interesting  to  the  hydro- 
graphers  of  Spain,  who  soon  prepared  charts  of  the 
coast,  according  to  his  exploration,  among  which 

1 Peter  Martyr,  Dec.  vi.  c.  10.  Herrera,  in.  vm.  8.  Cespedes,  Yslario 
General,  in  MS.  Cespedes  was  cosmograplier  major  of  the  Indies  in 
Seville  and  wrote  many  geographical  works  early  in  the  seventeenth 
century.  His  Yslario  General,  embracing  a history  of  the  islands  of  the 
world,  exists  in  the  Biblioteca  Nacional  in  Madrid. 

*16 


122 


VERRAZZANO. 


that  made  by  Diego  Ribero,  associate  of  Gomez  at  the 
junta  of  Badajos,  and  royal  cosmographer,  will  demand 
especial  attention. 

The  voyage  of  Gomez  and  what  he  had  accomplished 
became  immediately  known  to  the  world  at  large  by 
printed  publications.  He  arrived  home  on  his  return 
in  November  1525;  and  three  months  afterwards 
Oviedo  published  his  first  work,  addressed  to  the 
emperor,  in  which  he  makes  the  following  brief  men- 
tion of  the  expedition. 

“ Shortly  after  that  yowr  Maiestie  came  to  the  citie  of  Toledo, 
there  arryved  in  the  moneth  of  November,  Stephen  Gomes  the  pylot 
who  the  yeare  before  of  1524  by  the  commandement  of  yowre  maiestie 
sayled  to  the  Northe  partes  and  founde  a greate  parte  of  lande  con- 
tinuate  from  that  which  is  cauled  Baccaleos  discoursynge  towarde 
the  West  to  the  XL,  and  xli  degree,  fro  whens4  he  brought  certeyne 
Indians,  of  the  whiche  he  brought  sum  with  hym  from  thense  who 
are  yet  in  Toledo  at  this  present,  and  of  greater  stature  than  other 
of  the  firme  land  as  they  are  commonlye.  Theyr  coloure  is  much 
like  the  other  of  the  firme  lande.  They  are  great  archers,  and  go 
couered  with  the  skinnes  of  dyuers  beastes  both  wylde  and  tame.  In 
this  lande  are  many  excellent  furres,  as  marterns,  sables  and  such 
other  rych  furres,  of  the  which  the  sayde  pilot  brought  summe  with 
hym  into  Spayne.  They  have  sylver  and  copper  and  certeyne  other 
metalles.  They  are  Idolaters  and  honoure  the  soonne  and  moone, 
and  are  seduced  with  suche  superstitions  and  errours  as  are  they  of 
the  firme.”  1 

The  details  of  the  exploration  appear  more  dis- 
tinctly upon  the  charts  which  the  royal  cosmographers 
at  Seville  prepared,  with  the  names  given  to  the 
prominent  points  of  the  coast.  Two  of  these  maps 
are  still  extant,  bearing  the  respective  dates  of  1527 

1 Oviedo  de  la  natural  hystoria  de  las  Indias.  (Toledo,  15  Feby.  1526), 
fol.  14;  and  under  the  title  of  Relucion  Samaria , p.  16,  in  Barcia’s  His - 
* toriadores  primilivos , tome  i.  Translated  in  Eden’s  Decades  of  the  nezce  worlde , 
fol.  2113-14. 


THE  LETTER  FOUNDED  ON  THE  VOYAGE  OF  GOMEZ.  123 

and  1529,  the  first  by  an  anonymous  cartographer,  and 
the  last  by  Ribero.1  The  whole  line  of  coast  from 
the  river  Jordan,  in  latitude  33°  10',  visited  by 
both  the  expeditions  of  Ayllon,  to  Cape  Breton,  is 
laid  down  upon  them  with  sufficient  exactitude.  The 
names  indicate  the  exploration  to  have  been  made  by 
Gomez  the  whole  distance  between  those  points;  for 
no  other  navigator  of  Spain,  in  the  language  of  which 
they  are  given,  had  sailed  within  those  limits  up  to  the 
time  these  maps  bear  date.  The  only  question  which  has 
been  raised  in  this  regard  relates  to  the  expeditions  of 
Ayllon ; but  the  first  of  these,  a joint  descent  upon  the 
coast  to  carry  off  Indians  in  1520  by  two  vessels  be- 
longing to  the  licentiates  Ayllon  and  Matienzo  of  St. 
Domingo,  proceeded  no  further  than  the  Jordan,  as  we 
learn  from  the  testimony  of  Pedro  de  Quejo,  the  pilot 
of  Matienzo.2  The  expedition  which  Ayllon  made 
afterwards  in  1526,  in  person,  to  the  same  coast,  pro- 
ceeded directly  to  the  river  Jordan,  and  after  remain- 
ing there  a few  days,  ran  southwesterly  along  the  coast 
to  Gualdape  or  St  Helena,  where  Ayllon  died,  and 
from  whence  it  thereupon  immediately  returned  home 
to  St  Domingo,  without  any  further  attempt  at  ex- 
ploration.3 

1 Both  these  maps,  so  far  as  they  relate  to  America,  have  been  reproduced , 
with  very  valuable  notes  and  illustrations,  by  Mr.  Kohl  in  Die  leiden 
altesten  general  karten  von  Amerika.  Weimar,  1860. 

2 Proceedings  before  the  Auditors  at  St  Domingo,  by  virtue  of  a royal 
decree,  of  Nov.  1525,  in  relation  to  the  dispute  between  Ayllon  and 
Matienzo  concerning  their  discovery,  preserved  in  MS.  at  Seville. 

3 Oviedo,  term.  hi.  p.  624.  (Madrid,  1858,)  Mr.  Kohl  states  {Discovery 
of  Maine , 897)  that  the  ships  of  Ayllon  made  an  extensive  survey  of  the 
coast,  north  of  the  Jordan,  soon  after  their  arrival  in  the  country.  In  this 
he  is  in  error ; into  which  he  appears  to  have  been  misled  by  Navarrete,  a 
part  of  whose  language  he  quotes  in  a note,  as  that  of  Oviedo.  Navarrete, 


124 


VERRAZZANO. 


This  disastrous  expedition,  therefore,  went  no  further 
north  than  the  Jordan  or  Santee.  It  demonstrated 
the  falsity  of  the  stories  told  to  Peter  Martyr  by 
Francis,  the  Chicorane,  as  he  was  called,  one  of  the 
Indians  seized  in  the  first  expedition  and  taken  by  Ayl- 
lon  to  Spain,  of  the  vast  provinces  with  uncouth  names 
which  were  upon  his  authority  transferred  to  the  royal 
cedule  granted  to  Ayllon  on  the  12th  June,  1523. 1 
That  region  remained  unknown,  therefore,  until  the 
voyage  of  Gomez,  and  to  it  and  it  alone  can  the  names 
on  these  maps,  within  the  limits  before  designated,  be 
attributed. 

These  maps  passed  at  once  into  Italy ; and  that  of 
Ribero,  bearing  the  date  of  1529  and  the  arms  of  the 
then  reigning  pontiff,  Clement  VII,  and  his  suc- 
cessors, the  most  finished  of  the  three  copies  known 
to  exist,  is  still  to  be  foufld  at  Rome,  and  is  rea- 
sonably supposed  to  have  been  the  original ; and  like 

referring  to  the  portion  of  Oviedo’s  history,  not  then  (1829)  published,  as 
his  authority,  says  on  this  point  that  after  leaving  the  river  Jordan  the 
ships  of  Ayllon  proceeded  to  G-ualdape,  “ distante  cuarenta  6 cincuenta 
leguas  mas  al  norte ” distant  forty  or  fifty  leagues  more  to  the  north ; 
whereas  the  language  of  Oviedo,  as  contained  in  the  recently  published 
edition  of  his  work,  is,  “acordaron  de  yrse  a poblar  la  costa  delante  lia(?ia 
la  costa  occidental,  e fueron  a un  grand  rio  (quare'nta  6 quarenta  e <Jnco 
leguas  de  alii,  pocas  mas  6 menos)  que  se  dice  Gualdape,”  (ut  supra,  p. 
628)  they  agreed  to  go  and  settle  the  coast  further  on  towards  the  west  coast,  and 
went  to  a large  river,  ( forty  or  forty -five  leagues  from  that  place , a little  more 
or  less)  which  is  called  Gualdape.  The  course  of  the  coast  at  these  points 
is  northeast  and  southwest.  A westerly  course  was  therefore  to  the  south 
and  not  to  the  north.  Besides,  Oviedo  states  that  the  Jordan  was  in  latitude 
33°  40'  and  that  Gualdape  was  the  country  through  which  the  river  St. 
Helena  ran,  which  he  also  calls  the  river  of  Gualdape,  and  which  in  another 
part  of  his  history  he  places  in  latitude  33°  N.,  and  expressly  stating  that  the 
Jordan  was  north  of  the  St.  Helena,  towards  Cape  Trafalgar,  or  Cape  Fear 
(tom.  n.  p.  144.)  Ayllon,  therefore,  did  not  sail  north  of  the  Jordan, 
and  the  names  on  the  Ribero  map,  north  ol  that  river,  are  not  attribut- 
able to  his  expedition. 

1 P.  Martyr,  Dec.  vn.  c.  2 ; Navarrete,  hi.  153. 


THE  LETTER  FOUNDED  ON  THE  VOYAGE  OF  GOMEZ.  125 

the  last  decade  of  Peter  Martyr  in  1526,  which  men- 
tions the  discoveries  of  Gomez,  to  have  been  sent  to 
the  Holy  Father  at  his  desire,  in  order  to  keep  him  in- 
formed of  the  latest  discoveries.1  Other  copies  of  the 
Spanish  charts  showing  the  exploration  of  Gomez, 
found  their  way  into  Italy  about  the  same  time,  proving 
that  there  was  then  no  interdict  against  their  exporta- 
tion from  Spain  to  that  coun  try,  at  least.2  This  appears 
by  a volume  which  was  published  in  Venice  in  1534 
under  the  auspices  of  Ramusio,3  embracing  a summary 
of  the  general  history  of  the  West  Indies  by  Peter 
Martyr  and  a translation  of  Oviedo’s  natural  history 
of  the  Indies  of  1526,  containing  the  account  of  Gomez’ 
voyage,  with  a map  of  America  upon  which  the  dis- 
coveries of  Gomez  are  laid  down  the  same  as  upon  the 
Spanish  maps  of  1527  and  1529*  before  mentioned. 
The  following  colophon,  giving  the  origin  of  this  map, 
is  to  be  found  at  the  end  of  the  translation  of  Oviedo: 
“ Printed  at  Venice,  in  the  month  of  December  1534. 
For  the  explanation  of  these  books  there  has  been 
made  an  universal  map  of  the  countries  of  all  the  West 
Indies,  together  with  a special  map,  taken  from  two 
marine  charts  of  the  Spaniards,  one  of  which  belonged 
to  Don  Pietro  Martire,  Councillor  of  the  Royal  Council 

1 Nouvelles  Annales  des  Voyages.  Nouvelle  series,  tome  xxxv.  Annee 
1S53.  Tome  troisieme.  Paris.  Les  Papes  geographes  et  la  cartography  du 
Vatican.  Par  R.  M.  Thomassey.  Appendix,  p.  275. 

2 In  regard  to  the  freedom  which  the  charts  of  the  Spanish  navigators 
so  enjoyed  there  is  confirmatory  proof  in  Ramusio.  In  the  preface  to  his 
third  volume,  dedicated  to  his  friend  Fracastor  of  Florence,  he  writes; 
“ All  the  literaiy  men  daily  inform  you  of  any  discovery  made  known  to 
them  by  captain  or  pilot  coming  from  those  parts,  and  among. others  the 
aforesaid  Sig.  Gonzalo  (Oviedo)  from  the  island  of  Hispaniola,  who  every 
year  visits  you  once  or  twice  with  some  new  made  chart.” 

3 M.  d’Avezac  in  Bulletin  de  la  Socielede  Geographie  for  July  and  August 
1872. 


126 


VERRAZZANO. 


of  the  said  Indies,  and  was  made  by  the  pilot  and 
master  of  marine  charts,  Nino  Garzia  de  Loreno,  in 
Seville.  The  other  was  made  also  by  a pilot  of  the 
majesty,  the  emperor,  in  Seville.  With  which  maps 
the  reader  can  inform  himself  of  the  whole  of  this  new 
world,  place  by  place,  the  same  as  if  he  had  been  there 
himself.”  1 The  special  map  here  referred  to  is  one  of 
Hispaniola,  in  the  same  volume,  and  was  undoubtedly 
taken  from  that  of  Nuno  Garcia,  in  the  possession  of 
Peter  Martyr.  It  wa,s  therefore  made  in  or  before  the 
year  1526,  since  Martyr  died  in  that  year.  The  map 
of  America,  by  the  pilot  of  the  emperor  at  Seville,  was 
probably  the  anonymous  map  of  1527  before  men- 
tioned, as  it  appears  not  to  have  had  the  name  of 
the  author  upon  it.  These  facts  prove  at  least  that  the 
map  of  Ribero  was  in  Italy  in  the  year  1529,  and  that 
the  map  of  1527  may  have  been  there  before  that  year. 

It  was  from  the  delineation  of  the  coast  on  one  or 
other  of  these  two  maps,  which  are  in  that  respect 
almost  identically  the  same,  that  the  description  of  it 
in  the  Yerrazzano  letter  was  derived.  This  will  now  be 
made  manifest  by  the  application  of  that  description  to 
the  map  of  Ribero,  so  much  of  which  as  is  necessary,  is 
here  reproduced  for  that  purpose. 

In  making  the  proof  thus  proposed,  it  is  to  be  borne 
in  mind  that  the  letter  is  positive  and  explicit  as  to 
the  extent  and  limits  of  the  discovery  or  exploration 
which  it  describes.  It  fixes  them  by  three  different 
modes  which  prove  each  other  : 1.  Bygivingthe  latitude 

1 Tiiis  volume  lias  no  general  title,  but  contains  three  books,  primo , 
second/)  & ultimo  della  historia  de  V Indie  Occidentali.  It  is  very  rarely  found 
with  the  large  map  of  America.  We  are  indebted  to  the  kindness  of  James 
Lenox,  Esq.,  of  New  Xork,  for  the  use  of  a perfect  copy  in  this  respect. 


THE  LETTER  FOUNDED  ON  THE  VOYAGE  OF  GOMEZ.  127 

of  the  commencement  and  termination  of  the  voyage 
along  the  coast ; 2.  By  a declaration  in  two  different 
forms  of  the  entire  distance  run,  and  3.  By  a state- 
ment of  intermediate  courses  and  distances,  from  point 
to  point,  between  the  landfall  and  the  place  of  leav- 
ing the  coast,  separately,  making  in  the  aggregate  the 
whole  distance  named.  There  can  be  therefore  no 
mistake  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  writer  in  respect  of 
the  extent  of  the  exploration. 

As  to  its  limits  and  extent,  we  have  already  had 
occasion  to  quote  his  language  in  impressing  upon 
Francis  the  great  length  of  the  voyage ; giving  both 
at  the  same  time  : “ In  the  voyage,”  he  says,  “ which 
we  made  by  order  of  your  majesty,  in  addition  to 
the  92  degrees  which  we  ran  towards  the  west  from 
our  point  of  departure,  before  we  reached  land  in 
latitude  34,  we  have  to  count  300  leagues  which  we 
ran  northeastwardly  and  400  nearly  east , along  the 
coast , hejore  we  reached  the  b^th  parallel  of  north  latitude , 
the  point  where  we  turned  our  course  from  the  shore 
towards  home.”  This  distance  is  also  mentioned  in  the 
total  at  the  end  of  the  voyage,  where  he  says  : “ find- 
ing our  provisions  and  naval  stores  nearly  exhausted, 
we  took  in  wood  and  water,  and  determined  to  return 
to  France,  having  discovered  700  leagues  of  unknown 
lands.” 

The  several  courses  and  distances  run  are  described 
in  the  letter,  from  point  to  point,  as  follows  : 1 

First.  “ We  perceived  that  it  (the  land)  stretched  to 
the  south  and  coasted  along  in  that  direction  in  search  of 


1 The  translation  of  Dr.  Cogswell,  in  N.  Y.  Hist.  Collections , is  here  used, 
somewhat  condensed. 


128 


VERRAZZANO. 


some  port  in  which  we  might  come  to  anchor,  and  examine  L. 
into  the  nature  of  the  country,  but  for  fifty  leagues  we 
could  find  none  in  which  we  could  lie  securely.”  50 

Second.  “ Seeing  the  coast  still  stretched  to  the  south 
we  resolved  to  change  our  course  and  stand  to  the  north- 
ward, and  as  we  still  had  the  same  difficulty,  we  drew  in 
with  the  land,  and  sent  a boat  ashore.  Many  people,  who 
were  seen  coming  to  the  sea-side,  fled  at  our  approach.  We 
found  not  far  from  this  people  another.  This  country  is 
plentifully  supplied  with  lakes  and  ponds  of  running  water, 
and  being  in  the  latitude  of  34,  the  air  is  salubrious,  pure 
and  temperate,  and  free  from  the  extremes  both  of  heat  and 
cold.  We  set  sail  from  this  place  continuing  to  coast  along 
the  shore,  which  we  found  stretching  out  to  the  west  (east?). 
While  at  anchor  on  this  coast,  there  being  no  harbor  to 
enter,  we  sent  the  boat  on  shore  with  twenty-five  men  to 
obtain  water.  Departing  hence,  and  always  following  the 
shore,  which  stretched  to  the  north,  we  came  in  the  space  of 
fifty  leagues , to  another  land  which  appeared  beautiful  and 
full  of  the  largest  forests.  50 

Third . “ After  having  remained  here  three  days  riding 

at  anchor  on  the  coast,  as  we  could  find  no  harbor  we 
determined  to  depart,  and  coast  along  the  shore  to  the 
northeast.  After  proceeding  one  hundred  leagues,  we  found 
a very  pleasant  situation  among  some  steep  hills  through 
which  a very  larqe  river , deep  at  its  mouth  forced  its  way  to 
the  sea.”  100 

Fourth.  11  We  took  the  boat  and  entering  the  river  we 
found  the  country  on  its  banks  well  peopled.  All  of  a sud- 
den a violent  contrary  wind  blew  in  from  the  sea,  and 
forced  us  to  return  to  our  ship.  Weighing  anchor,  we 
sailed  eighty  leagues  towards  the  east , as  the  coast  stretched 
in  that  direction,  and  always  in  sight  of  it.  At  length  we 
discovered  an  island,  triangular  in  form,  about  ten  leagues 
from  the  mainland.  We  gave  it  the  name  of  your  majesty’s 
illustrious  mother.”  80 

Fifth.  “ We  did  not  land  there,  as  the  weather  was  un- 
favorable, but  proceeded  to  another  place,  fifteen  leagues 
distant  from  the  island,  where  we  found  a very  excellent 
harbor.  It  looks  towards  the  south,  on  which  side  the  harbor 
is  half  a league  broad.  Afterwards,  upon  entering  it,  the 
extent  between  the  east  and  the  north  is  twelve  leagues,  aud 


carta  universal 

eiL  que  se  contiene  todo  lo  que  del  mundo 
Se  M descnbierto  fasta  agora 

hizola  djego  rlbero, 

Cosniograplw  d&  SwMcgcJtcuL. 

Aiio  de!529  . 

Scale,  according  to  die.  derm-c-ano  letter 
50-Uae^ 


THE  LETTER  FOUNDED  ON  THE  VOYAGE  OF  GOMEZ.  129 


then  enlarging  itself,  forms  a very  large  bay , twenty  leagues 
in  circumference.”  15 

Sixth.  “ Having  supplied  ourselves  with  every  thing 
necessary,  on  the  sixth  of  May  we  departed  from  the  port 
and  sailed  one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues,  keeping  so  close  to 
the  coast  as  never  to  lose  it  from  our  sight.  We  did  not 
£top  to  land , as  the  weather  was  very  favorable  for  pursu- 
ing our  voyage,  and  the  country  presented  no  variety.  The 
shore  stretched  to  the  %ast  ” 150 

Seventh.  “ And  fifty  leagues  beyond,  more  to  the  north , 
where  we  found  a more  elevated  country.  The  people  were 
entirely  different  from  the  others  we  had  seen,  so  rude  and 
barbarous  that  we  were  unable  by  any  signs  we  could  make, 
to  hold  communication  with  them.  Against  their  will  we 
penetrated  two  or  three  leagues  into  the  interior  with  twenty- 
five  men.”  50 

Eighth.  “ Departing  from  thence  we  kept  along  the  coast, 
steering  between  east  and  north , and  found  the  country  more 
pleasant  and  open.  Within  fifty  leagues  we  discovered  thirty 
two  islands,  all  near  the  mainland.”  50 

Ninth.  “We  had  no  intercourse  with  the  people.  After 
sailing  between  east  and  north  one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues 
more  we  determined  to  return  to  France,  having  discovered 
700  leagues  of  unknown  lands.”  150 

Making  a total  of  695  L. 


Now  let  the  reader  trace  for  himself,  these  courses 
and  distances,  as  shown  on  the  accompanying  sketch 
of  the  map  of  Ribero,  according  to  the  following  scale, 

Leagues. 

50  100  150 

1— ......  I ! LI 

■ 10  degrees  or  15 6J4  leagues.  0 

representing  the  measurements  in  the  letter ; which 
are  calculated  on  the  basis  of  15.625  leagues  to  a degree, 
while  those  on  the  map  are  171  leagues;  and  he  will 
find,  that  not  only  is  the  whole  littoral  distance  be- 
tween the  parallels  of  34°  and  50°  on  the  map  about 
seven  hundred  leagues,  but  that  the  several  courses  and 


9 


17 


130 


VERRAZZANO. 


distances,  of  which  this  entire  distance  is  composed  ac- 
cording to  the  letter,  correspond  with  similar  divisions 
on  the  map,  proving  to  a certainty  that  this  map 
was  the  source  from  which  the  line  of  coast  described 
in  the  letter  was  derived,  or  the  reverse.  • 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  first  course,  beginning 
according  to  the  letter  at  the  landfall,  in  latitude  34  N., 
commences  on  the  map  a little  north  of  G.  Traffalgar 
as  there  laid  down,  now  Cape  Fear,  and  proceeds  south- 
erly fifty  leagues  to  C.  de  S.  Roman . 

The  first  course  being  retraced,  the  second , also  of 
fifty  leagues,  starting  from  the  landfall  near  C.  Traffal- 
gar, extends  to  C.  de  S.  Juan  of  the  map,  the  well 
known  point  of  Hatteras. 

The  third , runs  from  C.  de  S.  Juan , one  hundred 
leagues  northwardly , to  the  Montana  verde , the  Nave- 
sinks  at  the  mouth  of  the  Hudson,  “ described  as  the 
pleasant  situation  among  steep  hills,  through  which  a 
very  large  river  forced  its  way  into  the  sea.”  The 
perfect  identification  of  this  course  and  distance  has 
already  been  observed. 

The  fourth  extends  easterly  from  the  Montana  verde 
eighty  leagues  and  strikes  the  islands  of  the  G.  de 
Muchas  yllas , or  Cape  Cod,  where,  among  the  Eliza- 
beth islands,  Martha’s  Vineyard  and  Nantucket,  the 
island  of  Louise  is  intended  by  the  letter  to  be  placed. 
This  course,  easterly,  fixes  the  position  of  that  island 
at  this  point. 

The  fifth  course  and  distance  embrace  fifteen  leagues 
from  the  islands  of  C.  de  Muchas  ylhis , but  the  direction 
is  not  stated,  and  is  left  to  be  inferred  from  the  fact 
which  is  stated  that  they  proceeded  on  to  another  place 


THE  LETTER  FOUNDED  ON  THE  VOYAGE  OF  GOMEZ.  131 

where  they  entered  a harbor,  at  the  mouth  of  a large 
bay  opening  between  north  and  east,  of  twelve  leagues 
in  width.  This  course  must  therefore  have  been  north- 
erly and  proceeded  along  the  easterly  shore  of  G.  de 
Muchas  yllas  or  Cape  Cod. 

The  sixth  runs  easterly  from  the  harbor  on  the  G. 
de  Muchas  yllas , or  Cape  Cod,  one  hundred  and  fifty 
leagues  easterly  which  include  the  opening  of  the  great 
bay  of  twelve  leagues  and  proceeds  along  the  Arecifes 
or  C.  Sable  on  the  coast  of  Nova  Scotia  to  the  Sar gales, 
probably  Cape  Canso  at  Chedabucto  bay,  where  the  coast 
trended  more  northerly. 

The  seventh , from  the  Sargales , fifty  leagues  more  to 
the  north , extends  along  the  tierra  de  los  Bretones  or 
island  of  C.  Breton  to  the  cape  of  that  name,  passing 
the  R.  de  la  buelta , the  easterly  limit  of  the  voyage  of  # 
Gomez.  From  this  river  easterly  the  map  is  compiled, 
as  the  names  indicate,  from  Portuguese  charts. 

The  eighth , from  C.  Breton  fifty  leagues  between 
north  and  east,  runs  along  the  easterly  coast  of  the  tierra 
de  los  Bretones , to  the  supposed  northerly  shore  of  the 
bay  between  that  land  and  the  tierra  de  los  Bacallaos 
or  Newfoundland,  but  in  reality  the  southerly  en- 
trance into  the  gulf  of  St.  Lawrence. 

The  ninth , from  the  termination  of  the  last  course, 
embraces  one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues  between  north 
aiid  east  along  the  coast  of  the  Bacallaos  to  G.  Basso  or 
Cape  Ra6e  and  thence  along  the  easterly  coast  of  the 
Bacallaos  to  the  Y.  de  Bacallaos  in  latitude  50°  N.,  the 
point  of  departure  from  the  coast,  and  making  the 
complement  of  695  leagues,  in  all. 

Such  exact  and  unexceptional  concurrence  in  the 


132 


VERRA^ZANO. 


observation  of  distances  for  over  two  thousand  miles,* 
as  this  comparison  exhibits,  by  two  different  naviga- 
tors sailing  at  different  times,  under  different  circum- 
stances of  wind  and  weather,  and  undfcr  different  plans 
of  exploration,  is  impossible.  So  far  as  regards  the 
distances  running  north  and  south,  such  an  agreement 
might  happen,  because  the  truth  in  that  direction  was 
ascertainable  by  any  one,  by  means  of  observations  of 
the  latitude  ; but  not  as  regards  those  running  east  and 
.west ; for  these,  no  means  of  determining  them  existed, 
as  before  explained : and  accordingly  on  the  Ribero 
map  they  are  grossly  incorrect.  From  the  Montana 
verde  to  the  C.  de  Muchas  yllas,  that  is,  from  the  Hud- 
son to  the  west  end  of  the  peninsula  of  Cape  Cod,  the 
distance  appears  to  be  eighty  leagues,  or  nearly  double 
its  true  length;  while  the  width  of  the  great  bay 
between  the  C.  de  Muchas  yllas  and  the  Arecifes,  or 
from  Cape  Cod  to  Cape  Sable  is  shown  to  be  less  than 
twenty  leagues,  wh’ereas  it  is  more  than  fifty.  And  so 
also  from  the  Arecifes  to  the  Sargales,  from  Cape  Sable 
to  Cape  Canso,  it  is  one  hundred  and  thirty-five  leagues 
on  the  map,  or  twice  the  actual  distance.  These  great 
errors  show  how  impossible  it  was  at  that  time  to 
calculate  longitudinal  distances  correctly.  But  two 
navigators,  sailing  independently  as  mentioned,  could 
not  have  fallen  into  these  errors  exactly  to  the  same  ex- 
tent, exaggerated  in  the  two  cases  by  the  same  excessive 
length,  and  in  the  other  by  the  same  extraordinary 
diminution.  Yet  in  the  particulars  just  described  the 
map  and  the  letter  correspond  precisely.  Such  a coin- 
cidence of  mistakes,  could  not  have  been  accidental. 

One  of  these  documents  must,  therefore,  have  been 


THE  LETTER  FOUNDED  ON  THE  VOYAGE  OF  GOMEZ.  133 

the  source  of  the  other.  In  determining  between  them 
there  can  be  no  mistake  in  adopting  as  the  original, 
that  one  which  has  a certain  and  indisputable  authen- 
ticity, and  rejecting  that  which  is  unsupported  by  any 
other  testimony.  The  voyage  of  Gomez  was  long  the 
subject  of  consideration  and  preparation,  and  was  her- 
alded to  the  world  for  months  before  it  was  under- 
taken. The  order  of  the  king  of  Spain  under  wThich 
it  was  made,  still  exists  in  the  archives  of  that 
kingdom.  The  results  of  the  expedition  were  an- 
nounced by  credible  historians  of  the  country,  immedi- 
ately after  its  return  ; and  the  nautical  information 
which  it  brought  back,  and  in  regard  to  which  alone  it 
possessed  any  interest  at  the  time,  was  transferred  at 
once  to  the  marine  charts  of  the  nation,  imperfectly  it 
is  true,  and  spread  before  the  world.  These  charts  still 
remain  in  their  original  form,  as  they  were  then  pre- 
pared. With  these  incontrovertible  facts  to  sustain  it, 
the  discovery  of  Gomez  must  stand  as  established  in 
history  and,  consequently,  the  claim  of  Ye rrazzano 
must  fall.1 

1 The  map  of  Ribero  is  not  a faithful  representation  of  the  exploration  of 
Gomez,  in  many  respects.  The  tierra  de  Ayllon  is  made  to  embrace  a large 
portion  of  the  country  the  coast  of  which  was  discovered  by  Gomez.  The 
bay  of  Santa  Maria,  or  the  Chesapeake,  is  placed  two  degrees  further  south 
than  it  should  be,  that  is,  in  latitude  35°,  instead  of  37°  N.  The  B.  de  los 
Gamos,  or  Penobscot,  mentioned  by  Cespedes,  is  not  named  at  all.  The 
question,  however,  of  its  greater  or  less  correctness  is  of  no  importance  on 
the  present  occasion ; it  is  sufficient  that  it  was  followed  by  the  writer  of 
. the  letter,  erroneous  as  it  was. 


134 


YERRAZZANO. 


X. 

The  Career  oe  Yerrazzano.  An  Adventurous  Life 
and  an  Ignominious  Death.  Conclusion. 

The  true  history  of  Yerrazzano,  so  far  as  known,  is 
now  to  be  given,  in  order  to  make  a final  disposition 
of  this  story.  Nothing  is  preserved  in  relation  to  his 
early  life.  Even  the  year  of  his  birth  is  matter  of 
conjecture.  He  is  called  by  Ramusio,  Giovanni  da 
Yerrazzano,  Florentine;  and  according  to  Pelli,  was 
born  about  the  year  1485.  His  father  was  Piero 
Andrea,  son  of  Bernardo,  the  son  of  Bernardo  of  Yer- 
razzano, a little  towrf  situated  in  the  Yal  di  Greve, 
near  Florence,— the  latter  Bernardo  having  belonged 
to  the  magistracy  of  the  priors  in  1406.  All  that  his 
eulogist  was  enabled  to  gather  concerning  him,  beyond 
this  brief  genealogy,  is  taken  from  the  Yerrazzano. 
letter  and  the  discourse  of  Ramusio,  relating  how  he 
was  killed,  roasted  and  devoured  by  the  savages  in  a 
second  voyage  to  America  with  the  suggestion  of 

1 The  account  which  Ramusio  gives  of  Verrazzano,  and  the  manner  of 
his  death,  occurs  in  his  Discourse  on  Labrador , the  Baccalaos  and  New 
France  (vol.  hi.  fol.  417),  in  which,  after  referring  to  the  Cortereaes  and 
Sebastian  Cabot,  -he  adds  : 

“ There  also  sailed  along  the  said  land,  in  the  year  1524,  a great  captain  v 
of  the  most  Christian  king  in  France,  called  Giovanni  da  Vgrrazzano,  a 
Florentine;  and  tie  ran  along,  all  the  coast,  as  lar  as  Florida,  as  will  be 
particularly  seen  by  a letter  of  his,  written  to  the  said  king,  which  alone 
w<*  have  been  able  to  have,  because  the  others  have  got  astray  in  the  troubles 
of  the  unfortunate  city  of  Florence.  And  in  the  last  voyage  which  he 
made,  having  wished  to  descend  on  the  land  with  some  companions,  they 
were  all  put  to  death  by  those  people,  and  in  the  presence  of  those  who 
remained  on  board  of  the  ship,  were  roasted  and  devoured.  Such  a wretched 


THE  LIFE  AND  DEATH  OF  VERRAZZANO.  135 

Coronelli,  the  Venetian  geographer,  that  the  place 
where  he  thus  met  his  death  was  at  the  entrance  of 
the  gulf  of  St.  Lawrence.  The  spurious  letter  of  Carli 
adds  that  he  had  been  in  Egypt,  Syria  and  most  other 
parts  of  the  world.  The  ancient  manuscripts  of  Dieppe, 
as  we  have  seen,1  speak  of  one  of  his  name  who  ac- 

end  had  this  valiant  gentleman,  who,  had  not  this  misfortune  intervened, 
would,  by  the  great  knowledge  and  intelligence  which  he  had  of  maritime 
affairs,  and  of  navigation,  accompanied  and  favoured  by  the  immense 
liberality  of  King  Francis,  have  discovered  and  made  known  to  the  world, 
all  that  part  of  the  earth,  up  to  the  north  pole,  and  would  not  have  been 
contented  with  the  coast  merely,  but  would  have  sought  to  penetrate  far 
inland,  and-  as  far  as  he  could  go  ; and  many,  who  have  known  and  con- 
versed with  him,  have  told  me,  that  he  declared  it  was  his  intention  to 
seek  to  persuade  the  Most  Christian  King  to  send  from  these  parts,  a good 
number  of  people  to  settle  in  some  places  of  said  coast  which  are  of  tem- 
.perate  climate,  and  Very  fertile  soil,  with  very  beautiful  rivers  and  harbors 
capable  of  holding  any  fleets.  The  settlers  in  these  places  would  be  the 
occasion  of  producing  many  good  results,  and  among  others  of  bringing 
those  rude  and  ignorant  tribes  to  divie  e worship,  and  to  our  most  holy 
faith,  and  to  show  them  how  to  cultivate  the  land,  transporting  some  of 
the  animals  of  our  Europe  to  those  vast  plains ; and  finally,  in  time,  hav- 
ing discovered  the  inland  parts,  and  seen  whether  among  the  many  islands 
existing  there,  any  passage  to  the  south  sea  exists,  or  whether  the  main 
land  of  Florida  dr  the  West  Indies  continues  up  to  the  pole.  This  and  so 
much  is  what  has  been  related  of  this  so  brave  a gentleman,  of  whose  toil 
and  sweat,  in  order  that  his  memory  may  not  remain  buried,  and  his  name 
pass  into  oblivion,  we  have  desired  to  give  to  the  light  the  littl'e  that  has  come 
into  our  hands.” 

Ramusio  here  distinctly  asserts  that  the  only  document  in  relation  to 
the  voyage  of  Yerrazzano  which  he  had  been  able  to  procure,  was  the 
letter  which  he  published ; but  he  informs  his  readers  that  he  had  been 
told  by  certain  persons  who  had  known  and  conversed  with  Yerrazzano, 
that  it  was  the’ intention  of  the  navigator,  as  he  himself  declared,  to  seek 
permission  from  Francis  I,  his  adopted  sovereign,  in  whose  service  it  is 
claimed  he  made  the  discovery,  to  make  another  voyage  to  the  new  found 
land, for  tlje  purposes  of  colonization  and  further  exploration ; and  he  also 
states,  upon  the  same  or  other  authority,  that  Yerrazzano  on  another  voy- 
age was  killed  and  eaten,  by  the  natives  of  the  country.  Consequently, 
Yerrazzano  must  have  made  a second  voyage  to  America  and  obtained 
such  permission  from  the  king.  But  there  is  not  a particle  of  evidence  in 
existence,  apart  from  the  declarations  of  these  persons  to  Ramusio,  that 
any  such  permission  was  ever  given,  or  that  a second  voyage  took  place. 
It  proves  the  credulity  of  Ramusio  that  he  received  these  naked  statements 
without  any  examination. 

1 Ante,  p.  112,  note. 


136 


VERRAZZANO. 


companied  Aubert,  in  his  voyage  to  Newfoundland,  in 
1508;  and  the  statement  of  Hakluyt  before  referred 
to,  gives  some  ground  to  believe  that  he  was  employed 
in  early  voyages  to  that  region,  before  he  engaged  in 
his  operations  against  the  commerce  of  Spain. 

What  is  certainly  known  of  him  relates  almost  ex- 
clusively to  his  career  as  a French  corsair,  during 
the  few  years  which  intervened  between  the  breaking 
out  of  hostilities  between  Francis  I and  Charles  Y, 
and  his  death,  in  1527.  His  cruises,  though  directed 
principally  against  the  Spaniards,  were  not  tender  of 
the  interests  of  Portugal ; and  it  is  accordingly  from 
Spanish  and  Portuguese  writers  and  documents  of  the 
period,  that  the  little  information  that  exists  in  rela- 
tion to  him,  is  derived.  He  is  called  by  the  former, 
Juan  Florin  or  Florentin,  or  simply,  the  Florentine, — 
the  French  corsair.  He  is  designated  on  an  occasion  to 
be  noted,  as  Juan  Florin  of  Dieppe } They  appear  to., 
have  known  him  by  no  other  name.  They  never  heard 
of  him  as  a discoverer,  real  or  pretended,  of  new  coun- 
tries, until  long  afterwards.  The  Yerrazzano  letter  had 
not  been  published  when  Peter  Martyr,  Oviedo  and 
Gomara  wrote ; and  when  Martyr  and  Gomara  make 
mention  of  him,  they  do  so  only  by  the  title  by  which 
he  was  designated  by  the  Spanish  sailors.  There  was, 
therefore,  no  opportunity  for  his  identification  by  them  . 
in  the  double  character  of  a great  discoverer,  and  a 
corsair ; and  it  was  not  until  many  years  after  the 
publication  of  the  Yerrazzano  letter  that  this  identifi- 
cation was  first  declared  by  Barcia.1 2 

1 On  the  capture  of  the  treasure  fleet.  See  Appendix , iv. 

2 Ensayo  Chronologico,  sub  anno , 1524. 


THE  LIFE  AND  DEATH  OF  VERRAZZANO. 


137 


There  is  no  room,  however,  to  doubt  its  entire  cor- 
rectness. That  the  occupation  of  Verrazzano  was  that 
of  a cruizer  on  the  seas,  is  not  only  declared  in  the 
letter  ascribed  to  him,1  but  is  clearly  established  by 
the  agreement  made  by  him  with  Chabot.  Besides, 
there  is  no  other  Giovanni,  a Florentine,  known  in 
the  history  of  the  time,  sailing  in  that  capacity  under 
the  French  flag  and  from  the  same  port  of  Dieppe ; and 
the  references  must  have  therefore  been  to  him  alone. 

The  appellation  of  corsair,  does  not  necessarily  imply 
a pirate.  It  was  applicable  to  any  one  engaged  in 
the  capture  of  vessels  on  the  high  seas,  whether  author- 
ized to  do  so  or  not.  The  state  of  hostilities  between 
France  and  Spain,  protected  Yerrazzano  under  the 
rules  of  war,  as  a subject  of  Francis,  in  capturing 
Spanish  vessels,  as  long  as  it  continued ; and  the  an- 

1 Ramusio  gives  Verrazzano  this  character  more  distinctly  than  it  appears 
in  the  original  version.  One  ftf  his  first  alterations  of  the  text,  is  of  the 
passage  previously  referred  to,  relating  to  the  cruise  of  the  Normandy  and 
Dauphiny,  after  their  repairs  in  Brittany.  The  Carli  version  reads,  in 
connection  with  the  two  ships  on  that  occasion  : dove  restaurati  ard  V.  S. 
M.  inteso  il  discorso  facemo  con  quelle  armate  in  guerraper  li  Uti  di  Spagna , 
that  is,  “ where  being  repaired,  your  serene  majesty  will  have  understood 
we  made  the  cruize  with  this  fleet  of  war  along  the  coasts  of  Spain,”  from 
which  it  is  to  be  implied  only,  that  the  cruize  was  for  the  purpose  of 
depredating  on  Spanish  commerce.  But  Ramusio,  as  became  his  practice, 
with  this  document  at  least,  altered  this  clausa,  into,  dove  poi  che  furono 
secondo  il  bisogno  raccociate  & ben  armeggiate , peri  liti  di  Spagna  ce  n’and- 
ammo  in  cor  so,  il  che  V.  M.  haver  d inteso  per  il  profitto  che  ne  facemmo ; 
which  Hakluyt  fairly  renders : “ where,  after  we  had  repaired  them  in  all 
points  as  was  needfull,  and  armed  them  very  well,  we^took  our  course  along 
by  the  coast  of  Spain,  which  your  Majesty  shall  understand,  by  the  profit 
we  received  thereby”  As  this  cruize  according  to  the  date  of  the  letter  must 
have  taken  place  in  1523,  this  language,  which  is  Ramusio’s  own,  as  to  the 
profit,  would  seem  to  refer  almost  to  the  capture  by  Verrazzano  of  the 
treasure  sent  by  Cortes,  to  the  emperor  which  occurred  in  the  summer  of 
that  year,  as  hereafter  related;  but  Verrazzano’s  fleet  consisted  of  six  in- 
stead of  two  ships  on  that  occasion.  The  words  of  Ramusio,  show,  how- 
ever, that  he  knew  Verrazzano  was  a rover,  in  search  of  booty  on  the  seas, 
or  at  least,  that  he  so  regarded  him. 

. 18 


138 


VERRAZZANO. 


ohialous  condition  of  affairs  existing  at  that  time,  ac- 
cording to  tfie  Portuguese  historian,  Andrade,  of  pri- 
vate war  between  the  subjects  of  the  kings  of  France 
and  Portugal,  without  any  public  war  between  the 
sovereigns,  would  seem  to  have  justified  him  in  similar 
acts  in  regard  to  the  commerce  of  the  Portuguese,  as 
long  as  the  practice  was  not  forbidden  by  the  kings  of 
the  two  countries. 

The  first  adventure  of  the  kind,  in  which  we  hear 
of  Yerrazzano,  was  in  1521.  At  this  time  a valuable 
commerce  had  grown  up  between  Spain  and  her  con- 
quests in  the  West  Indies,  and  large  amounts  in  gold, 
pearls,  sugar,  hides  and  other  articles  were  sent  home. 
A ship,  on  her  way  from  Hispaniola,  was  captured 
by  him,  in  the  year  just  mentioned,  having  on 
board  eighty  thousand  ducats  in  gold,  six  hundred 
pounds  weight — eight  ounces  to  the  pound,  of  pearls 
and  two  thousand  arrobas,  of  twenty-five  pounds  each, 
of  sugar.1  In  the  following  year,  he  took  possession  of 
seven  vessels  bound  from  Cadiz  to  the  Canary  islands, 
with  emigrants,  but  being  overhauled  off  the  point  of 
Gando,  by  vessels  sent  in  pursuit,  was  compelled  to 
relinquish  his  prizes.2 

He  is  next  foun^  apparently  meditating  an  expedi- 
tion against  the  Portuguese  possessions  in  Brazil,  upon 
the  pretext  of  discovering  other  countries  in  the  east, 
which  that  nation  had  not  found.  The  mention  of 

1 Peter  Martyr,  Dec.  v.  c.  8.  Epistola  771  (ed.  1671).  In  this  letter  which 
is  dated  at  Valladolid  19th  November,  1522,  Martyr  writes : “ Anno  quippe 
superiore  Florinus  quidam  Gallus  pirala  navim  unain  ab  Hispaniola  ven- 
ientem,  auro  ad  summam  octoginta  millium  dragmarum,  unionum  vero 
libris  octuncialibus  sexcentis  & ruborum  saccari  duobus  millibus  rapuit.” 

2 Don  Bartholome  Garcia  del  Castillo  in  Noticias  de  la  historia  de  las  islas 
de  Canaria,  by  Don  Joseph  de  Viera  y Clavijo.  (Madrid  1772-84). 


THE  LIFE  AND  DEATH  OF  VERRAZZANO.  139 

this  project  is  positive,  and  becomes  curious  and  inter- 
esting in  the  history  of  his  life,  as  it  affords  the  only 
authentic  evidence  extant  of  any  suggestion  of  a voy- 
age of  discovery,  contemplated  by  him  towards  Cathay. 
The  design,  if  really  entertained,  appears,  however,  to 
have  fallen  through  and  to  have  been  abandoned ; but 
it  may,  nevertheless,  have  been  the  foundation  of  the 
story  of  the  alleged  voyage.  It  is  related  by  Francisco 
d’  Andrade,  in  his  Chronicle  of  John  III,  the  then 
reigning  king  of  Portugal. » After  referring  to  the  death 
of  Magellan,  as  an  event  which  removed  a cause  of 
difference  between  the  crowns  of  Portugal  and  Castile, 
growing  out  of  the  famous  expedition  of  that  navigator, 
Andrade  thus  speaks  of  the  state  of  affairs  between  the 
crowns  of  France  and  Portugal. 

“ At  that  time,  the  king  was  told  by  some  Portuguese,  doing 
business  in  France,  that  one  Joao  Yarezano,  a Florentine,  offered 
himself  to  Francis,  to  discover  other  kingdoms  in  the  East,  which 
the  Portuguese  had  not  found,  and  that  in  the  ports  of  Normandy 
a fleet  was  being  made  ready  under  the  favor  of  the.  admirals  of  the 
coast,  and  the  dissimulation  of  Francis,  to  colonize  the  land  of  Santa 
Cruz,  called  Brazil,  discovered  and  laid  down  by  the  Portuguese  in 
the  second  voyage  to  India.  This,  and  the  complaints  every  where 
made  of  the  injuries  inflicted  by  French  corsairs,  rendered  the  early 
attention  of  the  king  necessary. 

“ Accordingly  he  sent  to  France  an  embassador,  Joao  da  Silveyra, 
son  of  Fernao  da  Silveyra,  who  delayed  his  going  no  longer  than 
was  necessary  to  get  ready.  The  purpose  of  his  mission  was  to  ask 
Francis,  inasmuch  as  there  never  had  been  war  between  them,  but 
rather  an  ancient  peace  and  friendship,  that  he  would  give  orders 
throughout  his  kingdom  for  the  many  robberies  and  injuries,  perpe- 
trated at  sea  on  each  other  by  the  Portuguese  and  French,  to  cease, 
(which  tacitly  was  a private  and  not  an  open  war,  as  in  general  they 
were  friends) ; that  whatever  could  be  found  in  his  ports  taken  from 
the  Portuguese,  should  be  restored,  as  what  might  be  found  in  the 
harbors  of  Portugal,  taken  from  the  French,  should  be  forthwith 
given  up,  and  that  to  all  who  should  ask  justice  in  this  particular 


140 


VERRAZZANO. 


it  should  be  rendered  immediately  and  fully.  The  king  then  re- 
quired brands  likewise,  to  prevent  his  vessels  from  making  outfits 
to  go  to  parts  of  the  Portuguese  conquest,  whither  it  was  not  law- 
ful for  even  Portuguese  vessels  to  sail  or  the  people  to  traffic. 

“ Joao  da  Silveyra  was  well  received  at  the  court  of  France;  but 
as.  respects  the  specific  matters  of  negotiation  in  his  charge,  he  was 
answered  every  way  indefinitely,  with  reasons  more  specious  than 
sound  which  appeared  to  be  given  not  so  much  to  conclude  the  affairs 
upon  which  he  treated  as  to  procrastinate  and  consume  time. 

“ Joao  da  Silveyra  continued  to  solicit  with  much  urgency  the 
matters  in  his  keeping  at  the  court  of  France,  and  received  answers 
respecting  them  according  as  the  matters  which  were  proposed  in 
Portugal,  [the  marriage  of  Carlota,  daughter  of  Francis,  with  the 
prince  Dom  Joao],  gave  hopes  of  advancement.  The  king  said 
through  one  Luys  Homem  that  he  greatly  desired  the  fostering  and 
increase  of  ancient  friendship.  Following  upon  that  in  a few 
days  he  ordered  the  vessels  in  his  ports  preparing  for  India  to  be 
stopped,  stating  that  he  would  arrange  this  in  such  a way  that  the 
king  should  be  satisfied.  Measures  were  adopted  for  the  restoration 
of  all  property  that  was  known  to  have  been  taken  from  the  king#or 
his  vessels,  and  expectations  were  entertained  of  an  order  making 
such  provision  throughout  as  should  put  a stop  to  all  the  robberies 
and  the  evils  arising  from  them.  Since  this  had  been  the  principal 
object  for  which  the  embassador  had  been  sent  to  France,  it  appeared 
to  the  king  of  Portugal,  that  it  would  be  fgr  his  .service  that  he 
should  order  the  return  of  Joao  da  Silveyra,  and  that  the  licentiate 
Pedro  Gomez  Feixeira  with  Master  Diego  de  Gevoeya,  (to  whom  he 
likewise  wrote  of  cnis  matter)  should  demand  justice  respecting  cer- 
tain matters  of  his  property  and  assist  such  of  his  vessels  as  were 
seeking  it.  But  before  the  order  for  the  return  of  Silveyra  had  left 
this  court,  information  was  received  by  one  Jacome  Monteyro  (who 
by  authority  of  the  king  of  France  sought  the  restitution  of  property) 
that  Francis  had  issued  new  orders,  commanding  the  general  seques- 
tration of  all  the  property  of  the  king  of  Portugal  and  of  his  people, 
the  embargo  of  all  his  vessels  to  be  found  in  the  ports  of  France, 
without  the  declaration  of  any  new  cause,  or  the  statement  of  any 
reason  for  this  order,  the  opposite  of  what  had  before  been  promul- 
gated. The  king  in  consequence,  directed  Joao  da  Silveyra  to  take 
truthful  information  of  the  particulars  and  the  reasons  for  this  pro- 
ceeding and  commanded  his  presence  before  the  council,  to  make 
them  known. 


THE  LIFE  AND  DfeATH  OF  VERRAZZANO.  141 


u Following  this,  hostilities  having  been  declared  between  the 
kingdoms  and  seignories  of  the  emperor  and  the  king  of  France, 
they  waging  cruel  strife  by  land  and  sea,  the  French  with  an  arma- 
ment afloat  took  a Spanish  ship  with  gold,  belonging  to  the  emperor, 
within  the  limits  of  the  Portuguese  coast,  besides  much  property  of 
individuals,  regardless  of  where  she  had  been  found,  so  little  atten- 
tive were  they  in  those  times,  to  Portugal  and  Portuguese ; seized 
her  by  force  as  belonging  to  their  enemies,  and  carried  her  off,  as 
good  prize  of  war.  Pedro  Batelho  was  sailing  the  while,  giving 
protection  to  the  coast  of  Portugal,  by  the  royal  order,  according  to 
the  ancient  custom  of  this  kingdom,  held  always  to  be  useful  and 
necessary,  the  value  of  which  became  evident  from  what  occurred 
afterwards,  when  it  fell  into  disuse. 

“ The  captain  coming  out  one  morning  with  his  fleet,  near  those 
who  were  carrying  off  the  Spanish  ship,  he  obliged  them  by  force  to 
take  in  sail,  as  they  hesitated  to  obey  for  some  time,  until  he  in- 
formed himself  of  what  had  passed.  Discovering  that  there  were 
some  doubts  and  that  deliberation  would  be  necessary  to  do  justice, 
he  brought  all  before  him  to  the  port  of  Lisbon,  where  the  prize 
was  sequestrated  and  they  made  prisoners,  and  the  case,  by  order  of 
the  king,  was  sent  to  the  Casa,  da  Supplicagam  where  sentence  was 
pronounced  the  following  year.  This  news,  which  was  directly 
known  in  France,  made  great  change  in  the  order  of  affairs  with 
Portugal,  and  produced  the  state  they  were  afterwards  in,  during 
the  following  nine  consecutive  years  that  Joao  da  Silveyra  was 
there,  in  which  time,  he  accomplished  nothing  he  had  in  hand,  ex- 
cept to  embargo  the  voyage  of  the  Florentine , of  which  mention  is 
made  before,  and  of  some  few  vessels  of  corsairs  which  was  but  sheer 
justice  to  us.”  1 * 

The  time  when  these  preparations  were  being  made 
by  Ve rrazzano,  is  more  definitely  fixed  by  a despatch 
of  Srlveira  to  the  king,  from  Paris  on  the  25th  of  April 
1523,  in  which  he  states  that  “Verazano”  had  not 
yet  left  for  Cathay.2  It  is  highly  probable,  therefore, 

1 Cronica  de  muyto  alto , emuyto  poderoso  rey  destes  reyno's  de  'Portugal  Bom 
Joao  o in  deste  nome.  By  Francisco  d’  Andrade.  Part  i,  c.  13  and  14. 
(Lisbon  1613.) 

2 Santarem  gives  the  date  of  this  despatch  as  of  the  23d  of  April  1522, 
Quadro  Flementar,  tom.  in,  sec.  xvi,  p.  165.  But  the  letter  of  Silveira  will 
be  found  in  full  in  the  Appendix  (m)  from  the  Portuguese  archives.  Santarem 


142 


VERRAZZANO. 


that  this  whole  story  of  an  intended  voyage  of  dis- 
covery was  proposed  for  the  purpose  of  concealing  the 
real  object  of  the  preparations  which  were  going  on  in 
Normandy,  of  seizing  the  treasure  which  had  been 
sent#from  Mexico,  by  Cortes  to  the  emperor,  of  the 
successful  accomplishment  of  which  we  have  now  to 
speak. 

In  November,  1522,  a vessel  arrived  in  Spain  which 
had  been  sent  from  Mexico,  by  the  conquistador  with 
the  emperor’s  share  of  the  tribute  money  collected  in 
that  country,  in  the  special  charge  of  Alonzo  Davila 
and  Antonio  Quinones,  with  other  articles  of  value. 
Fearing  capture  by  the  French  corsairs,  this  vessel 
had  sailed  by  the  way  of  the  Azores,  and  leaving  the 
treasure,  with  its  custodians,  at  the  island  of  Santa 
Maria,  proceeded  on  without  it,  in  order  that  a proper 
force  might  be  sent  to  that  island  to  bring  it  safely  to 
Spain.  Juan  Ribera,  the  secretary  of  Cortes,  came  in 
the  ship  to  Spain.  These  facts  appear  to  have  become 
notorious  immediately.  Peter  Martyr  mentions  them 
in  his  letter  of  the  17th  of  November  1522,  and  in  the 
fifth  of  his  deftades,  written  while  the  treasure  was 
still  at  Santa  Maria,  speaks  of  the  French  having 
knowledge  of  its  being  left  there.  “I  know  not,”  he 
says,  “in  reference  to  the  ships  sent  there  for.it,  wjiat 
flying  report  there  is  that  the  French  pirates  have 
understood  of  those  ships,  God  grant  them  good  suc- 
cesse.”*  1 Three  caravels  were  despatched  from  Seville 

is  evidently  mistaken  as  to  the  year,  inasmuch  as  the  news  of  Magellan’s 
death,  to  which  Andrade  refers  as  a prior  event,  did  not  reach  Spain  until 
September  1522  and  Silveira’s  appointment  as  embassador  was  after  that 
news  was  received. 

1 Bee.  v.  c.  10.  (Lok’s  trans.) 


THE  LIFE  AND  DEATH  OF  VERRAZZANO.  143 

to  Santa  Maria,  under  the  command  of  Captain  Dom- 
ingo Alonzo,  arriving  there  on  the  15th  of  May  1523. 
Davila  and  Quinones  immediately  embarked  in  them, 
with  the  treasure,  sailing  directly  to  Spain.  Mean- 
while, Yerrazzano  proceeded  with  six  vessels  towards 
Cape  St.  Vincent,  for  the  purpose  of  intercepting  them, 
which  he  succeeded  in  doing,  within  ten  leagues  of 
that  cape.  After  a sharp  encounter,  in  which  Quinones 
was  killed,  he  captured  two  of  them,  in  one  of  which 
Davila  was  taken  with  the  gold,  and  the  other  most 
valuable  articles.  The  third  caravel  escaped,  and 
arrived  in  Spain,  with  a tiger  and  various  articles  of 
rich  manufacture,  which  had  belonged  to  Montezuma. 
Yerrazzano  took  his  prizes  into  Rochelle.  The  value 
of  the  treasure  and  articles  taken  was  estimated  at 
more  than  six  hundred  thousand  ducats,  or  one  million 
and  a half  of  dollars. 1 

These  facts  at  least  establish  that  Joao  Yerazano 
mentioned  by  the  Portuguse,  Andrade  and  Silveira, 
was  the  same  person  who  made  the  capture  of  the 
treasure  ships ; for  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  two 
different  Florentines  of  the  name  of  Giovanni,  were  in 
command  of  French  fleets,  at  the  same  time,  belonging 
to  the  ports  of  Normandy  alone;  and  consequently 
that  Yerrazzano,  our  navigator,  and  Juan  Florin  the 
corsair  were  one.  But  how  far  the  seizure  of  the  treas- 
ure ships  was,  as  before  suggested,  the  original  pur- 

1 Peter  Martyr,  Dec.  v.  c.  8.  Epist.  771,  Nov.  19, 1522,  and  779,  June,  11, 
1523  (ed.  1670).  Herrera,  Dec.  m.  lib.  iv.  c.  20.  Letter’  of  Davila  to  the 
emperor  from  Rochelle,  June  17,  1523,  in  the  archives  at  Seville,  now 
first  published  in  the  Appendix  (rv),  Martyr  says  there  were  two  ships, 
the  larger  of  which  only,  containing  the  treasure  fell  into  the  hands  of  John 
Florin,  the  French  pirate,  and  the  other  escaped ; but  Davila  must  be  right. 


144 


VERRAZZANO. 


pose  of  the  fleet  can  only  be  inferred  from  the  circum- 
stances, and  is  important  only  in  connection  with  the 
design  of  a voyage  of  discovery.  Between  the  time  of 
the  arrival  of  Ribera  with  the  information  that  the 
treasure  had  been  left  at  the  Azores,  and  the  sending 
of  the  caravels  to  bring  it  to  Spain,  nearly  six  months 
elapsed.  Taking  the  dates,  which  are  established  by 
the  official  documents  now  produced,  of  the  fitting  out 
of  the  fleet  in  Normandy  by  Yerrazzano  and  the  actual 
capture  of  the  two  caravels,  it  is  easy  to  see  that  the 
real  purpose  of  those  preparations  from  the  first,  might 
have  been  to  effect  the  capture  of  the  treasure.  The 
transmission  of  the  news  to  Portugal  of  an  intended 
voyage  to  Brazil  and  the  sending  of  instructions  to  the 
embassador  at1  the  French  court  could  all  have  taken 
place  after  the  detention  of  the  treasure  at  Santa  Maria 
became  known  in  France  and  the  fitting  out  of  the  ves- 
sels for  its  capture  had  begun  to  be  made.  It  is  stated  by 
Andrade  that  it  was  at  a port  in  Normandy  where  the 
Vessels  were  being  made  ready ; and  it  is  to  be  presumed, 
from  the  connection  of  Yerrazzano  with  Jean  Ango,  as 
shown  subsequently  by  the  agreement  with  Chabot  for 
a like  purpose,  that  it  was  from  Dieppe,  and  probably 
at  the  expense  of  that  rich  merchant,  who  we  are  told 
was  enabled  to  entertain  his  sovereign  with  princely 
magnificence  and  to  embargo  the  port  of  Lisbon,  with 
a fleet  of  his  own,2  that  they  sailed  on  this  occasion. 

Yerrazzano  is  certainly  found  at  Rochelle  on  the  16th 
of  June,  1523,  two  months  after  the  despatch  of  Silveira 

1 According  to  the  letter  of  Silveira,  he  was  at  Poissy  on  Christmas,  and 
Andrade  was  therefore,  probably  in  error  in  stating  that  he  had  his  instruc- 
tions in  regard  to  Varezano  before  he  left  Portugal. 

2 Mem.  Chron.  de  Dieppe,  i.  106-111. 


• THE  LIFE  AND  DEATH  OF  VERRAZZANO.  145 

was  written,  with  his  prizes  captured  on  a different  ex- 
pedition from  that  mentioned  by  the  ambassador.  It  is 
evident,  therefore,  that  the  project  of  a voyage  of  dis- 
covery to  Cathay,  if  ever  seriously  entertained,  had  at 
that  time  been  abandoned;  as  may  also  be  inferred 
from  the  statement  of  Andrade,  that  Silveira,  in  the 
nine  years  he  was  at  the  court  of  France,  succeeded 
only  in  embargoing  the  voyage  of  the  Florentine,  and 
accomplishing  some  minor  matters.1 

But  the  question  of  any  such  voyage  of  discovery 
having  been  made  at  the  time  claimed  in  the  Yerraz- 
zano letter  is  effectually  set  at  rest  by  the  fact  that 
Yerrazzano  was  then  actually  engaged  in  a corsairial 
enterprise  elsewhere.  Peter  Martyr,  in  an  epistle  writ- 
ten on  the  3d  of  August  1524,  less  than  a month  after 
the  alleged  return  of  Yerrazzano  to  Dieppe  from  his 
voyage  of  discovery,  wrote  from  Yalladolid  that  “a 
courier  of  the  king  of  Portugal  had  arrived  (with  word) 
that  Morin , the  French  pirate , had  captured  a ship  of 
his  king  on  her  way  from  the  Indies,  with  a cargo 
valued  at  one  hundred  and  eighty  thousand  ducats.” 2 
It  is  impossible  for  Yerrazzano  to  have  been  on  the  coast 
of  North  America,  or  on  his  return  from  Newfoundland 
to  France,  and  at  the  same  time  to  have  taken  a ship 
on  her  way  from  the  Indies  to  Portugal,  coming  as 
she  must  have  done,  by  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope. 

The  defeat  of  Francis  I at  the  battle  of  Pavia  and 
his  capture  and'  detention  in  Spain  during  the  year 

1 The  document  accompanying  the  letter  of  Davila  in  the  archives,  de- 
scribes Juan  Florin  as  of  Dieppe,  and  thus  fixes  the  seat  of  his  operations 
in  Normandy.  See  Appendix,  (iv.  2.) 

2 Epist.  800  (ed.  1670). 

19 


146 


VERRAZZANO. 


1525,  seem  to  have  suspended  the  depredations  upon 
the  seas  by  the  French,  and  nothing  more  occurs  relat- 
ing to  Ye rrazzano,  until  after  the  release  of  the  king, 
in  the  following  year,  and  then  in.  an  adventure  which 
seems  to  have  cost  him  his  life,  unless  his  probable 
appearance  in  England  as  mentioned  by  Hakluyt,  to 
which  reference  has  already  been  made,  be  an  excep- 
tion. Allusion  has  also  been  mad#  several  times  to 
•an  agreement  between  Chabot,  admiral  of  France, 
and  others,  including  Verrazzano,  which  now  assumes 
particular  importance.  It  is  the  only  document  yet 
produced. in  France,  relating  to  him,  and  is  of  recent 
discovery.1  By  this  agreement  it  was  stipulated  that 
Chabot,  as  admiral  of  France,  should  furnish  two  gal- 
leons, Jean  Ango  one  ship,  and  Verrazzano  two  pilots 
besides  himself,  and  that  the  three  persons  here  named 
should*  with  Guillaume  Preudhomme,  general  of  Nor- 
mandy, Pierre  Despin olles  and  Jacques  Boursier,  in 
different  specified  amounts  each,  make  up  the  sum  of 
twenty  thousand  pounds  in  Tours  currency  for  the 
expenses,  on  joint  account,  of  a voyage  to  the  Indies 
for  spices, — the  admiral  and  Ango,  however,  to  have 
one-fourth  of  all  the  merchandise  returned,  for  the  use 
of  the  vessels,  and  Verrazzano  to  have  one-sixth  of  the 
remaining  three-fourths,  for  his  compensation  and  that 
of  his  two  pilots.  The  contract  contained  another  pro- 
vision, that  if  any  booty  should  be  taken  on  the  sea 
from  the  Moors,  or  other  enemies  of  the  faith  and  the 
king,  the  admiral  should  first  take  a tenth  of  it  and  the 
remainder  should  be  divided  as  stipulated  in  regard  to 


(ii). 


Margry,  Les  Navigations  Franqaises,  p.  194.  (Paris,  167.)  See  Appendix 


THE  LIFE  AND  DEATH  OF  VERRAZZANO.  147 

the  merchandise,  except  such  part  as  should,  upon  ad- 
visement, be  given  to  the  crew.  The  admiral  was 
to  have  letters  patent  expedited  from  the  king  for 
permission  to  make  the  voyage.  This  paper  has  no 
date,  but  #s  it  was  made  by  Chabot,  in  his  official 
capacity,  as  admiral  of  France,  it  could  not  have  been 
earlier  than  March  1526,  when,  as  we  have  seen,  he 
was  so  created.  It  belongs,  therefore,  either  to  that  or 
the  following  year,  judging  from  the  fatal  consequences 
which  happened  to  Ye rrazzano  in  the  latter. 

Although  a voyage  from  France  to  the  Indies  for 
spices  was  not  an  improbable  venture  at  that  time, 
inasmuch  as  one  was  actually  made  from  Dieppe,  two 
years  afterwards,  by  Jean  Parmentier  in  the  service  of 
Ango,  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  such  was 
not  the  real  object  of  the  parties  to  this  agreement. 
One  of  the  stipulations  between  them  was  for  a divi- 
sion of  booty,  showing  an  intention  to  make  captures  on 
the  sea.  Who  were  the  enemies  of  the  king  from 
whom  it  was  to  be  taken  is  not  stated.  By  the  treaty 
of  Madrid,  in  January  1526,  peace  existed  between 
France  and  Spain,  and  any  expedition  from  one  of  them 
against  the  commerce  of  the  other,  was  clearly  pirati- 
cal. Neither  did  war  exist  at  this  time,  between  France 
and  Portugal.  Yet  it  appears  that  both  the  Spaniards 
and  the  Portuguese,  were  searching  for  Yerrazzano  at 
the  time,  when  the  former  succeeded  in  capturing  him, 
in  September  or  October  1527.  He  had,  therefore, 
not  sailed  to  the  Indies  and  must  have  made  himself 
obnoxious  to  those  nations-,  by  fresh  depredations  upon 
their  vessels.  Bernal  Diaz,  who  gives  an  account  of  his 
capture  and  execution,  states  that  he  was  actually  so 


148 


VERRAZZANO. 


engaged.1  It  appears  from  the  letters  of  the  judge  who 

superintended  his  execution  that  he  was  then  encount- 
ered by  six  Biscayan  galleons  and  ships,  and  after  battle, 
captured  and  taken  by  them  to  Cadiz,  with  his  crew, 
consisting  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  or  thirty  persons, 
besides  .several  gentlemen  adventurers.  Yerrazzano 
offered  his  captors  thirty  thousand  ducats  to  be  re- 
leased, but  in  vain.  He  was  sent  under  guard  with 
the  adventurers  to  Madrid,  but  was  overtaken  on  the 
way  at  Colmenar  near  Puerto  del  Pico,  villages  between 
Salamanca  and  Toledo,2  by  the  judge  of  Cadiz  with  an 
order  made  by  the  emperor  at  Lerma  on  the  13th  of 
October  1527,  by  virtue  of  which  he  was  there  put  to 
death  in  November  of  that  year.  Such  was  the  ter- 
mination of  the  career  of  this  bold  man,  which  was  long 
ago  substantially  told  by  Bernal  Diaz  and  Barcia,  but 
so  loosely  in  regard  to  dates,  as  to  have  created  doubts 
as  to  th^ir  correctness,  but  which  is  established  by  the 
documents  existing  in  the  archives  at  Simancas,  now 
brought  to  light.3 

1 Historia  verdadera,  fol.  164. 

2 Blaeu,  Utriusque  Castilice  nova  descriptio.  Martiniere,  Dictionaire  Geo- 
grophique,  sub  Colmenar  et  Pico. 

3 See  the  letter  of  the  judge  of  Cadiz,  in  the  Appendix  (v.i.)  Barcia,  in  his 
Chronological  Essay,  mentions  the  capture  and  execution  of  Juan  the 
Florentine  as  a pirate  under  the  year  1524.  He  does  not  state  that  they 
took  place  in  that  year,  but  refers  to  them  in  connection  with  the  discover- 
ies alleged  to  have  been  made  in  that  year  by  Verrazzano,  whom  he  identi- 
fies as  the  corsair.  It  has  been  supposed,  consequently,  that  he  meant  that 
year  as  the  time  of  Verrazzano’ s death ; and  hence,  inasmuch  as  Verrazzano 
was  known  to  have  been  alive  after  that  year,  that  the  whole  story  was 
an  error.  The  letters  of  Juan  de  Giles,  the  resident  judge -of  Cadiz,  ap- 
pended to  this  memoir,  enable  us  to  fix  the  date  of  his  execution,  for 
although  not  dated  themselves,  they  contain  a reference  to  the  date  of  the 
cedule,  ordering  the  execution,  by  which  it  can  be  determined.  Giles  men- 
tions that  this  cedule  was  dated  at  Iserma,  on  the  13 th  of  last  month , show- 
ing that  it  was  made  there  on  the  13th  of  some  month.  According  to  the 
Itinerary  of  Charles  V,  kept  by  his  private  secretary ,V andernesse,  containing 


THE  LIFE  AND  DEATH  OF  VERRAZZANO.  # 149 


And  thus  finally  the  testimony,  upon  which  the  tale 
of  discovery  was  credited  and  proclaimed  to  the  world, 
is  contradicted  and  disproved.  The  statement  that 
Verrazzano  and  a member  of  his  crew  were  killed  and 
then  feasted  upon  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  coast  which 
he  had  visited  a second  time,  has  no  support  or  con- 
firmation in  the  history  of  that  rude  and  uncivilized 
people;  for,  however  savage  and  cruel  they  were 
towards  their  enemies,  or,  under  provocation,  towards 
strangers,  no  authenticated  instance  of  their  canibal- 
ism  has  ever  been  produced ; but  on  the  contrary  the 
testimony  of  the  best  authorities,  is  that  they  were 
guiltless  of  any  such  horrid  practice.  Yet  that  state- 
ment was  a part  of  the  information  which  Ramusio  re- 
ceived and  communicated  to  his  readers  at  the  same 
time  with  the  Verrazzano  letter;  and  constituted  a 
part  of  the  evidence  upon  which  he  relied.  How  utterly 
false  it  was  is  shown  by  the  agreement  with  Chabot 
and  the  capture  and  execution  of  Verrazzano  by  the 
Spaniards.  It  is  now  seen  how  the  credulity  of  the 
historian  was  imposed  upon,  and  he  was  led  by  actual 

an  account  of  the  emperor’s  journeys  from  the  year  1519  to  1551,  Charles 
went  to  Lerma,  a small  town  in  Old  Castile,  for  the  first  time  on  the  9th 
of  May,  1524,  and  returned  thence  to  Burgos  on  the  12th  of  that  month, 
going  to  Lerma  again  on  the  . 21st  of  July  of  that  year  and  leaving  it  on 
the  24th  for  Vallidesole.  He  was  not  there  afterwards,  until  the  12th  of 
October,  1527,  where  he  remained  until  the  17th  of  that  month  when  he 
went  to  Burgos.  He  went  to  Lerma  again  on  the  20th  of  February  1528, 
and  remained  there  for  two  days  only.  These  are  all  the  occasions  of 
his  presence  at  Lerma  during  the  whole  period  of  the  Itinerary.  These 
dates  prove  that  the  only  possible  occasion  for  issuing  the  order  of  execu- 
tion was  the  18th  of  October  1527.  The  prisoners  left  under  guard,  on  the 
15th  of  that  month  for  Madrid,  and  the  letter  apprising  the  emperor  that 
the  order  had  been  executed  upon  Verrazzano,  must  have  been  written  in 
November,  the  month  following. 

The  Itinerary  will  be  found  in  the  Correspondence, of  the  Emperor  Charles 
V , by  William  Bradford,  London,  1850. 


150 


YERRAZZANO. 


misrepresentations  to  adopt  a narrative  which  has  no 
foundation  in  truth,  and  whose  inconsistencies  and  in- 
congruities he  vainly  sought  to  reconcile,  but  which, 
for  three  centuries,  sanctioned  by  his  authority  alone, 
has  been  received  as  authentic  and  true;  until  at 
length,  by  the  exposure  of  its  original  character,  and 
the  circumstances  of  its  publication  by  him,  with  the 
production  of  undoubted  evidence  from  the  records  of 
the  time,  it  is  proven  to  be  a deliberate  fraud. 

This  completes  our  purpose.  The  question,  however, 
still  presents  itself,  what  was  the  motive  for  this  gross 
deception  ? The  answer  is  suggested  by  the  fact  that  all 
the  evidence  produced  in  favor  of  the  story  is  traceable 
to  Florence,  the  birthplace  of  Verrazzano.  Ramusio 
obtained  the  Yerrazzano  letter  there, — the  only  one, 
he  says,  not  astray  in  consequence  of  its  unfortunate 
troubles.  The  letter  of  Carli,  enclosing  that  of  Verraz- 
zano, is  professedly  written  by  a Florentine  to  his  father 
in  that  city.  The  map  of  Hieronimo  de  Yerrazano  bears 
the  impress  of  the  family.  The  discourse  of  the  French 
captain  of  Dieppe  appears  to  have  been  sent  originally 
to  Florence,  whence  it  was  procured  by  Ramusio. 
Even  the  globe  of  Euphrosynus  Ulpius,  a name  other- 
wise unknown,  is  represented  to  have  been  constructed 
for  Marcellus,  who  had  been  archbishop  of  Florence. 
They  are  all  the  testimony  of  Florence  in  her  own  be- 
half. The  cities  of  Italy  which  had  grown  in  wealth 
and  importance  during  the  fifteenth  century,  by  means 
of  an  enterprising  and  valuable  commerce,  produced 
and  nurtured  a race  of  skillful  seamen,  among  whom 
were  the  most  distinguished  of  the  first  discoverers  of 
the  new  world, 'in  the  persons  of  Columbus,  Vespucci 


THE  LIFE  AND  DEATH  OF  VERRAZZANO,  151 

and  the  Cabots ; but  those  cities  contributed  nothing 
more  to  the  discoveries  which  thus  were  achieved,  than 
to  give  these  men  birth  and  education.  The  glory  of 
promoting  and  successfully  accomplishing  those  results 
belonged  to  other  nations,  which  had  the  wisdom  and 
fortune  to  secure  the  services  of  these  navigators.  The 
cities  shone,  however,  with  the  lustre  reflected  from 
having  reared  and  instructed  them  to  the  work  they 
so  wonderfully  performed.  . Although  enjoying  a com- 
mon nationality,  these,  municipalities  belonged  to 
independent  republics  and  were  in  a measure  rivals 
of  each  other.  Florence  emulated  Genoa.  She  truly 
boasted  that  Yespucci,  born  and  raised  on  her  soil,  was 
the  first  to  reach  the  main  l^nd  and  thus  to  have  his 
name  applied  to  the  whole  continent,  66  America  quasi 
Americi  terra;”  while  Genoa  justly  claimed  for  her 
son,  that  the  discovery  of  all  America  was  to  be  re- 
garded as  assured  from  the  moment  that  Columbus 
la'nded  on  the  little  sandy  island  of  Guanahana,  on  the 
12th  of  October  1492.1  But  Florence  enjoys  in  addi- 
tion the  unenviable  distinction  of  having  sought  to 
advance  ^he  pretensions  of  Yespucci  by  fictitious  let- 
ters; purporting  to  be  signed  with  his  name.2  That 
this  spirit  of  civic  pride  in  that  same  community  may 
have  actuated  the  fabrication  of  the  Yerrazzano  letter 
is  not  improbable;  but  in  justice  to  the  memory  of  Yer- 
razzano it  must  be  added,  there  is  no  reason  to  believe 
that  he  was  in  any  way  accessory  to  the  imposture. 


1 Humboldt,  Examen  Critique , rv,  37. 

2 Varnbagen,  Amerigo  Vespucci,  soncaractere}se8  ecrits  (meme  les  moins  au- 


thentiques ) &e.,  p.  67,  ei  seq , (Lima,  1865). 


appendix 


20 


APPENDIX. 


Lettera  dx  Fernando  Carli  a suo  padre. 


From  the  Archivo  Storico  Italianio.  Appendice  Tomo  IX.  53-5.  Firenze  1853. 

Al  nome  di  Dio 

a di  4 Agosto  1524. 

“ Onorando  padre. — Considerando  che  quando  fui  in  la 
armata  di  Barbaria  alle  Gierbe  vi  furono  grate  le  nuove 
advisatevi  giornalmente  per  lo  illustre  sig.  Don  Ugo  di 
Moncada , capitano  generale  della  Cesarea  Maesta  in  quelle 
barbare  parti , seguite  certando  (1)  con  li  Mori  di  detta  isola ; 
per  l£t  quale  mostrasi  baver  fatto  piacere  a molti  nostri  pad- 
roni ed  amici,  e con  quelli  della  conseguita  vittoria  congra- 
tulatovi : pertanto , essendo  nuovamente  qui  nuova  della 
giunta  del  capitano  Giovanni  da  Y errazzano  nostro  fioren- 
tino  alio  porto  di  Diepa  ifi  Eormandia  con  sua  nave  D elfin  a , 
con  la  quale  si  parti  dalle  insule  Canarie  fino  di  Gennaio 
passato  , per  andare  in  busca  di  terre  nuove  per  questa  ser- 
enissima  corona  di  Francia,  in  che  mostro  coraggio  troppo 
nobile  e grande  a mettersi  a tanto  incognito  viaggio  con  una 
sola  nave  che  appena  e una  caravella  di  tonelli  (2) , solo 
con  50  uomini,  con  intenzione  di,  giusta  sua  possa,  disco- 
prire  il  Cataio , tenendo  cammino  per  altri  climati  di  quelli 
usano  li  Portughesi  in  lo  discoprire  di  verso  la  parte  di 

(1)  Combattendo  {Not a fyelV edizione  Bomana).  • 

(2)  L’amanuense  ha  lasciato  il  numero  delle  tonnellate  di'cni  era  capace 
la  nave  {Nota  come  sopra). 


* 


156 


VERRAZZANO. 


Calicut , ma  andando  verso  coro  e settentrione  omnino  ten- 
endo,  che  ancora  (1)  Tolomeo  ed  Aristotile  ed  altri  cosmo- 
grafi  descrivano  verso -tali  climati  non  trovarsi  terra,  di 
trovarvene  a ogni  modo ; e cosi  gli  ha  Dio  concesso , come 
distintamente  descrive  per  una  sua  lettera  a questa  S.  M. ; 
della  quale  in  questa  ne  e una  copia.  E per  mancargli  le 
vettovaglie , dopo  molti  mesi  giunto  navigando , assegna 
essergli  stato  forza  tornare  da  quello  in  questo  emisperio , 
e in  sette  mesi  suto  in  viaggio  mostrare  grandissimo  ed  ac- 
celerate cammino , aver  fatto  -cosa  miranda  e massima  a chi 
intende  la  marinera  del  mondo.  Della  quale  al  cominciamen- 
to  di  detto  suo  viaggio  si  fece  male  iuditio  (2) , e molti  pen- 
sorno  che  non  piu  ne  di  lui  ne  del  vascello  si  avesse  nuova , ma 
che  si  dovesse  perdere  da  quella  banda  della  Eorvegia  per 
il  grande  diaccio  che  e per  quello  oceano  settentrionale : 
ma  come  disse  quel  Moro , lo  Dio  grande , per  darci  ogni 
giorno  piu  notizie  di  sua  infinita  possanza  e mostrarci  di 
quanto  sia  admirabile  questa  mundiale  machina , gli  ha  dis- 
coperto  una  latitudine  di  terra , come  intenderete , di  tanta 
grandezza  che , secondo  le  huone  ragioni  e gradi , per  lati- 
tudine (et)  altezza , assegna  e mostra  piu  grande  che  l’Eu- 
ropa , Africa  e parte  di  Asia : ergo  mundus  novas : e questo 
senza  lo  che  (3)  hanno  discoperto  in  piu  anni  gli  Spani  per 
l’occidente,  che  appena  e un  anno  torno  Ferrando  Maga- 
ghiana , quale  discoperse  grande  paese  con  una  nave  meno 
delle  cinque  (4)  a discoprire.  Donde  addusse  garofani  mol- 
to  piu  eccellenti  delli  soliti ; e le  altre  sue  navi  in  5 anni 
mai  nuova  ci  e trapelata.  Stimansi  perse.  Quello  (5)  che 
questo  nostro  capitano  abbia  condotto  ryDn  dice  per  questa 
sua  lettera , salvo  uno  uomo  giovanetto  preso  di  quelli  paesi ; 
ma  stimansi  che  abbia  portato  mostra  di  oro,  poiche  da 
quelle  bande  non  lo  stimano , e di  droghe  e di  altri  liquori 
aromatici , per  conferire  qua  con  molti  mercatanti  di  poi 


(1)  Ancorche. 

(2)  L’ediz.  romana  ha  indizio , ma  crediamo  per  errore  di  stampa. 

(3)  Quello  che  (Nota  come  sopra).  • 

(4)  Forse  venne  qui  omesso  ite  o simile ; e sembra  accennarsi  al  naufra- 

gio  <Si  una  di  quelle  cinque  navi.  * 

(5)  Nella  romana  si  legge:  “stimansi  per  se  quello  ec.”;  ma  ci  sembra 
che  il  senso  giustifichi  abbastanza  la  nostra  correzione. 


APPENDIX. 


157 


che  sara  stato  alia  presenza  della  Serenissima  MaestsL  E a 
questa  ora  doverr^  esservi , e di  qua  trasferirsi  in  breve , per 
che  e molto  desiato,  per  ragionare  seco ; tanto  pm  cbe  tro- 
vera  qui  la  Maesta  del  Re  nostro  sire , cbe  fra  tre  o quattro 
giorni  vi  si  attende : e speriamo  che  S.  M.  lo  rimetta  di 
mezza  dozzina  di  buoni  vascelli , e che  tornera  al  viaggio. 
E se  Francesco  Carli  nostro  ci  fosse  tornato  dal  Cairo , ad- 
visate  che  alia  ventura  vorr4  andare  seco  a detto  viaggio  , 
e credo  si  conoschino  al  Cairo  dove  e stato  pin  anni ; e non 
solo  in  Egitto  ed  Soria , ma  quasi  per  tutto  il  cognito  mon- 
do  ; e di  qua  mediante  sua  virtu  e stimato  un  altro  Ameri- 
go Vespucci,  un  altro Ferrando  Magaghiana,  e davantag- 
gio ; e speriamo  che  rimontandosi  delle  altre  buone  navi  e 
vascelli  ben  conditi  e vettovagliati  come  si  richiede , abbia 
ad  iscoprire  qualche  profittoso  traffico  e fatto ; e far& , pre- 
standogli  nostro  Signore  Dio  vita , onore  alia  nostra  patria 
da  acquistarne  immortale  fama  e memoria.  E Alderotto 
Brunelleschi  che  parti  con  lui , e per  fortuna  tornando  in- 
dietro  non  volse  pin  seguire  , come  di  costa  lo  intende , sar& 
malcontento.  Re  altro  per  ora  mi  occorre  , perche  per  altre 
vi  ho  avvisato  il  bisogno.  A voi  di  continuo  mi  raccomando , 
pregandovi  ne  facciate  parte  agli  amici  nostri , non  dimen- 
ticando  Pierfrancesco  Dagaghiano  (1) , che  per  essere  per- 
sona perita , tengo  che  ne  prender&  grande  passatempo ; ed 
a lui  mi  raccomanderete.  Simile  al  Rustichi , al  quale  non 
dispiacera  se  si  diletta , come  suole , intendere  cose  di  cos- 
mografia.  Che  Dio  tutti  di  male  vi  guardi. 

Vostro  figliuolo 

Fernando  Carli  in  Lione. 


(1)  Forse , da  Gagliano. 


158 


VERRAZZANO. 


II. 


Agreement  of  Philippe  Chabot,  Admiral  op  France 

WITH  CERTAIN  ADVENTURERS  INCLUDING  VERRAZZANO. 

From  the  Fontette  Collection,  xxi,  770,  fol.  60,  in  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale  in  Paris. 

First  printed  by  M.  Margry,  and  here  corrected  according  to  the  MS. 

Eons,  Philippe  Chabot,  baron  d’Apremont , chevalier 
de  Fordre  du  Poi , son  gouverneur  et  lieutenant  general  de 
Bourgoingne  , admiral  de  France  et  de  Bretaine. 

Avons  ce  jourdhuy  delibere  que , pour  le  bien  , prouffict 
et  utilite  de  la  chose  publicque  du  royaulme  de  France , 
mettre  sur  deux  de  nos  gallyons  estant  de  present  au 
Havre  de  Gr&ce  avec  une  nef  appartenant  a Jehan  Ango  , 
de  Dieppe  , du  port  soixantedix  tonneaulx  ou  environ , por 
iceulx  troys  veseaulx , esquipper , vitailler  et  convinyr , pour 
faire  le  voiaige  des  espiceryes  auxin  dies. — Dontpour  icel- 
luy  voiage  faire  avons  accorde  avec  les  personnes  cides- 
soubz  nommes  et  signez  en  la  maniere  qui  ensuict  pour 
fournyr  lesd.  trois  navyres  de'  marchandises , victailles  et 
avance  de  compaignons  ainsi  qu’il  sera  requis  et  necessaire. 

Et  pour  ce  faire  avons  eonclud  et  delibere , avec  iceulx  , 
mectre  et  employer  jusques  4 la  somme  de  vingt  mil  livres 
tour,  c’est  assavoir , pour  nous  Admiral  quatre  mille  livres 
tour , maistre  Guillaume  Preudhomme , general  de  Eor- 
mandye,  deux  mil  livres  tour;  Pierre  Despinolles,  mil 
livres  tour;  Jehan  Ango , deux  mil  livres  tour;  Jacques 
Boursier , pareille  somme  de  deux  mil  livres  tournoys , mes- 
sire  Jehan  de  Yaresam  , principalie  pilote  , semblable  som- 
me de  deux  mil  livres  tournoys. 

Lesd.  parties  revenans  ensemble  a ^ somme  de  vingt  mil 
livres  tournoys.  Por  icelle  employer  aux  vitailles,  mar- 
chan  dises  et  avance  , loyer  de  compagnons.  Et  nous  Amy- 
ral  et  Ango  prom etons  bailler  lesd.. gallyons  et  nef,  bien 


APPENDIX. 


159 


et  deuement  radoubees  et  accoustrees , comme  il  appartient 
4 faire  led  voyaige , tant  de  calfadages , cables , ancres , 
doubles  appareilz , tous  cordages  , artilleryes  , pouldres , 
boullets , et  tout  ce  qui  est  requiz  a telz  navires  pour  faire 
ung  tel  et  si  long  voiaige  que  cestuy  et  rendre  iceulx  gal- 
yons  et  nefs  prestz , et  apareillez  a faire  led.  voiaige  dedans 
deux  moys  de  ce  jourduy  Par  ainsy  que  nous  Admiral  et 
Ango , prenderons  au  retour  dud.  voiaige , pour  le  fret  et 
noleage  desd.  gallyons  et  nef , le  cart  de  toutes  les  marchan- 
dises qui  reviendront  et  seront  rapportes  par  iceulx , sans 
aucune  chose  payer. 

fEt  pour  le  loyer  dudict  messire  Jehan  pillote , lequel 
s’est  submis  et  oblige  de  fournyr  deux  pillotes  bons  et  suf- 
fisans  pour  conduire  les  deux  aultres  navires , prendra  pr 
son  diet  loyer  et  de  ses  deux  pillotes , le  sixiesme  de  tout  se 
qui  reviendra  de  marchandises , led.  cart  por  nolliage , les 
frais  et  raises  des  marchandises  et  loyers  des  cdpaignons 
en  prealable  prins  et  leves  avant  que  prendre  led.  sixiesme. 

Et  se  , par  cas  de  fortune  , aucuns  d’iceulx  gallyons  ou 
nef  feussent  pdus  aud.  voiaige , ou  que  Tung  p quelque  inco- 
venient  et  les  deux  aultres  feissent  leur  voiaige , la  mar- 
chandise  qui  reviendroit  se  pteroit  comme  c^essus  et  y ptiroit 
led.  navire  qui  n’ayroit  este  audict  voyaige  et  les  marchans, 
chacun  au  marc  la  livre , car  tout  va  a commun  profit. 

Et  se  aucun  butin  se  faict  4 la  mer  sur  les  Mores , ou 
aultres  ennemys  de  la  Eoy  et  du  Roy ; monseigneur  l’Amy- 
ral  prendera  en  prealable  sur  icelluy  butin  son  xme  , et  le 
reste  qui  revenderoit  dud.  butin  se  ptira  comme  l’autre 
marchandise  , sauf  quelque  portion  d’icelluy  butin  , que  ] 
ong  baillera  aux  cbpagnons  ainsi  qu’il  sera  avise. 

Et  fera  mond.  sr  Lamyral  txpedier  letres  du  Roy  en 
patent  pour  avoir  licence  et  conge  de  faire  led.  voiaige , et 
que  aucun  empeschement  ne  leur  sera  fet  ou  donne  par 
aucune  nation,  des  aliez  , amys  ou  cofenderez  du  Roy  nore 
d sr. 

Pour  le  voiage  de  messire  Joan. 


160 


VERRAZZANO. 


[Translation.] 

We,  Philippe  Chabot,  Baron  d’Apremont,  Knight  of  the 
Ordre  du  Roi,  his  Governor  and  Lieutenant-general  of 
Burgundy,  Admiral  of  France  and  of  Brittany, 

Have  this  day  determined  for  the  good,  advantage,  and 
utility  of  the  public  affairs  of  the  Kingdom  of  France,  to 
put  two  of  our  galleons,  at  present  at  Havre  de  Grace, 
with  one  ship  belonging  to  Jehan  Ango  of  Dieppe,  of 
seventy  tons  burden,  or  thereabouts,  to  equip,  victual  and 
fit  these  three  vessels,  to  make  the  voyage  for  spices  to  the 
Indies.  To  make  the  aforesaid  voyage,  we  have  agreed 
with  the  persons  hereinafter  named  and  signed,  in  the  man- 
ner following,  to  furnish  the  said  three  vessels  with  goods, 
victuals,  and  advance  money  for  the  crew,  as  shall  be  requi- 
site and  necessary. 

And  to  do  this  we  have  concluded  and  determined  with 
the  aforesaid,  to  put  and  employ  as  large  a sum  as  twenty 
thousand  pounds,  Tours  currency,  that  is  to  say,  for  ourself, 
Admiral,  four  thousand  pounds,  Tours ; Master  Guillaume 
Preudhomme,  General  of  Kormandy,  two  thousand  pounds, 
Tours ; Pierre  Despinolles,  one  thousand  pounds,  Tours ; 
Jehan  Ango,  two  thousand  pounds,  Tours;  Jacques  Bour- 
sier,  an  equal  sum  of  two  thousand  pounds,  Tours ; Mes- 
sire  Jehan  de  Yaresam,  Chief  pilot,  a like  sum  of  two 
thousand  pounds,  Tours. 

The  said  parts  together  amounting  to  the  said  sum 
of  20,000  pounds,  Tours,1  to  be  employed  for  provisions, 
merchandise,  and  advance  money  to  hire  the  crew.  And 
we,  Admiral  and  Ango,  promise  to  deliver  the  said  gal- 
leons and  ship  well  and  properly  refitted  and  accoutred, 
as  befits  to  make  the  said  voyage,  as  well  as  caulkings, 
cables,  anchors,  duplicate  furniture,  all  cordage,  artillery, 
powder,  shot,  and  all  that  is  required,  by  such  vessels,  to 
make  such  a long  voyage  as  this ; and  to  have  these  gal- 

1 The  sums  here  named  do  not  make  twenty  thousand  pounds.  — Trans- 
lator. 


APPENDIX. 


161 


leons  and  ship  ready  and  prepared  to  make  the  said  voy- 
age within  two  months  from  this  day.  Also,  that  we, 
Admiral  and  Ango,  Will  take,  on  the  return  from  the  said 
voyage,  for  the  freight  and  freighting  of  the  said  galleons 
and  ship,  the  fourth  part  of  all  the  merchandise  which  shall 
return  and  shall  be  brought  back  by  the  aforesaid,  with- 
out any  cost. 

And  for  the  hire  of  the  said  pilot,  Messire  Jehan,  who 
has  agreed  and  bound  himself  to  provide  two  good  and 
competent  pilots  to  steer  the  other  two  vessels,  he  shall 
take  for  his  hire  and  that  of  his  two  pilots,  the  sixth  of  all 
the  goods  which  shall  be  brought  back ; the  said  fourth 
for  freightage,  expenses  and  disposing  of  the  goods,  and  the 
wages  of  the  crew,  being  previously  taken  and  levied,  be- 
fore taking  the  said  sixth. 

And  if,  in  case  of  accident,  any  of  those  galleons  or  ship 
should  be  lost  on  the  said  voyage,  or  if  one  by  any  mis- 
chance does  not,  and  the  other  two  do  make  their  voyage, 
the  merchandise  which  should  be  brought  back,  would  be 
divided'  as  above,  and  the  said  vessel  which  might  not  have 
been  on  the  said  voyage  shall  share,  and  the  merchants  each 
one  a mark  to  the  pound,  for  all  goes  to  the  common  profit. 

And  if  any  booty.be  taken  at  sea,  from  the  Moors  or 
others  enemies  of  the  Faith  and  the  King,  my  Lord  ; the 
Admiral,  shall  take  previously,  of  the  aforesaid  booty, 
his  tenth;  and  the  balance  which  would  accrue  from  the 
said  booty,  shall  be  divided  like  the  other  goods,  except 
some  portion  of  that  booty,  which  shall  be  given  to  the  crew 
as  shall  be  advised. 

And  my  aforesaid  Admiral  shall  have  letters-patent  from 
the  king  expedited,  in  order  to  have  permission  and  leave 
to  make  the  said  voyage ; and  no  obstruction  shall  be  made 
or  given  to  these  letters,  by  any  allies,  friend,  or  confeder- 
ate of  the  king,  our  said  Lord. 

• , 

For  the  voyage  of  Sir  Joan.  ^ 


21 


162 


VERRAZZANO. 


# 


III. 


Letter  of  Joao  da  Silveira,  the  Portuguese  Ambassa- 
dor in  France,  to  King  Dom  Joao  III. 

Translated  from  the  original  at  Lisbon,  in  Archivo  de  Torre  de  Tombo , Corp.  Chron. 

Part  I.  Ma.  29.  Doc.  54. 

Sire : 

I received  a letter-  from  Your  Highness  on  the  19th  of 
this  month,  through  Joao  Francisco,  wherein  I am  directed 
what  is  to  he  done  respecting  the  galleon  and  caravel,  taken 
at  the  deira  Islands,1  by  the  galleys  of  France.  As  soon  as 
I received  the  instruction,  which  was  about  the  beginning 
of  Christmas,  I spoke  on  the  subject  in  a manner  befitting  • 
the  nature  of  the  case.  At  once  they  were  release^,— the 
caravel  with  her  artillery  and  the  brocades  and  silks.2  By 
this  tiirfe  they  must  have  arrived  at  Lisbon.  As  respects 
the  merchandise,  I had  the  promise  that  if  it  was  found  to 
be  the  property  of  Your  Highness^br  of  your  subjects  it 
should  not  be  sold.  After  a few  days,  discovering  that  it 
belonged  to  Joao  Francisco,  an  ample  order  was  given  to 
his  agents  for  its  entire  restitution,  which  orders  set  forth 
that  as  he  lives  in  the  kingdoms  of  Your  Highness,  and  f 
there  is  an  old  friendship  existing  with  the  King  of  France 
which  he  was  no  less  desirous  of  preserving,  in  this  he 
would  favor  that  king.  After  this  order  was  promulgated 
another  came  from  the  chief  official,  in  consequence  of 
which  nothing  was  delivered,  and  the  goods  moreover  were 
sold.  From  that  time  to  the  present,  nothing  has  been 
accomplished.  I will  strive  the  best  I can  for  despatch,  in 
the  manner  that  Your  Highness  points  out,  and  will  give* 
account  of  what  I do.  ™ 

1 Probably  Madeira  Islands.  Translator. 

2 That  is  to  say,  the  hangings,  tapestry,  and  awnings  of  the  vessel. 

Translator.  • 


APPENDIX. 


163 


When  the  matter^of  the  galleon  occurred,  the  Licentiate 
Pero  G-omez  had  already  embarked  at  Anafior.  I advised 
the  Doctor,  Maestro  Diogo,  who  was  about  going  to  Reuao1 
that  he  ought  not  to  leave  before  writing,  and  to  give 
Your  Highness  a statement  of  the  facts  in  that  regard  ; as 
he  at  once  wrote  that  he  would  do  so,  I have  said  nothing 
further  in  my  letters. 

By  what  I hear,.. Maestro  Joao  Yerazano,  who  is  going 
on  the  discovery  of  Cathay,  has  not  left  up  to  this  date,  for 
want  of  opportunity  and  because  of  differences,  I under- 
stand, between  himself  and  men ; and  on  this  topic,  though 
knowing  nothing  positively,  I have  written  my  doubts  in 
accompanying  letters.  I shall  continue  to  doubt  unless  he 
take  his  departure. 

The  Doctor  Maestro  Diogo  de  Grouvea  is  now  going  to 
Ruao1  where  he  is  going  to  find  out  everything  with  the 
greatest  exactness  possible,  and,  as  I have  requested,  re- 
port at  great  length.  May  our  Lord  prolong  the  life  of 
Your  Highness  many  days  and  prosper  the  royal  estate. 

From  Poessi  the  xxv  of  April  1523. 

Joao  da  Silveira. 


1 i.  e.  Rouen.  Translator. 


164 


VERRAZZANO. 


IV. 

1.  Letter  of  Alonso  Davila  to  the  Emperor  Charles  V, 

RELATING  TO  THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  TREASURE  SENT  FROM 

Mexico  by  Cortes. 

Translated  from  the  original  in  the  Archivo  de  Indias  at  S«dlle. 

Very  high  and  very  'powerful  Catholic  Lord  King: 

Captain  Domingo  Alonso,  who  was  commander  of  the 
three  caravels  that  sailed  as  guard  on  the  coast  of  Andalu- 
sia, gave  a cedula  to  Antonio  Quinones  and  myself  at  the 
Island  of  Azores,  in  which  Your  Majesty  was^pleased  to 
state  to  us  that,  from  the  news  of  our  fear  of  the  French 
who  were  said  to  run  the  coast,  we  had  remained  at  the 
island  of  Santa  Maria  until  your  Highness  should  direct 
what  might  he  for  the  royal  service,  in  so  doing  we  had 
acted  well;  that  to  secure  the  gold  and  articles  we  had 
brought,  the  three  caravels  were  sent  to  us  under  that  cap- 
tain ; and  we  were  enjoined  to  embark  in  them  at  once  and 
come  with  every  thing  to  the  city  of  Seville,  to  the  House 
of  Contratacion,  and  the  officers  who  by  the  royal  command 
reside  there,  for  which  favor  we  kiss  your  feet  and  hands. 

The  caravels  arrived  the  xvth  of  May,  and  directly  in  ful- 
filment of  the  order  we  embarked,  sailing  for  the  Portu- 
guese coast,  «which  the  pilots  deemed  the  safer  course,  and 
coming  within  ten  leagues  of  Cape  St.  Vincent,  six  armed 
French  ships  ran  out  upon  us.  We  fought  them  from  two 
caravels,  until  we* ’were  overpowered,  when  everything 
eminently  valuable  on  the  way  to  Your  Majesty  was  lost ; 
the  other  caravel  not  being  disposed  to  fight  escaped  to 
carry  the  news ; and  but  for  that  perhaps  the  captain  might 
better  have  staid  with  his  additional  force  to  aid  our  defence 
than  to  carry  back  such  tidings.  Quinones  died,  and  I am 
a prisoner  at  Rochelle  in  France. 

I should  desire  to  come,  would  they’but  let  me,  to  kiss 
your  royal  feet,  and  give  a complete  history  of  all ; for  I 


APPENDIX. 


165 


lost  everything  I possessed  in  the  service  of  Yonr  Majesty, 
and  have  wished  that  my  life  had  been  as  well.  I entreat 
that  privileges  be  granted  to  the  residents  and  inhabitants 
of  Yew  Spain  and  that  yon  will  consider  services  to  have 
been  rendered,  since  that  people  have  loyally  done  their 
duty- to  this  moment,  and  will  ever  do  as  true  vassals. 

I beseech  that  Yonr  Majesty  be  pleased  to  order  good  pro- 
tection placed  on  the  coast  of  Andalusia  for  the  ships  com- 
ing from  the  Indies ; for  now  all  the  French,  flushed  as 
they  are,  desire  to  take  positions  whence  they  may  commit 
mischief.  Let  it  be  an  armament  that  can  act  offensively, 
and  which  will  not  flee,  but  seek  out  the  enemy. 

I entreat,  prisoner  and  lost  as  I am,  yet  desiring  still  to 
die  in  the  royal  service,  that  Your  Highness  will  so  favor 
me,  that  if  any  ship  should  be  sent  to  Yew  Spain,  an  order 
be  directed  to  Hernando  Cortes,  requiring  that  the  Indians 
I have  there  deposited  in  the  name  of  Your  Majesty  be  not 
taken,  but  that  they  be  bestowed  on  me  for  the  period  that 
is  your  pleasure. 

Our  Lord  augment  the  imperial  state  of  Your  Royal 
Majesty  to  the  extent  your  royal  person  may  require. 

From 

d.  xxiij  years. 

Of  Y.  C.  Ca.  Ma.  the  loyal  vassal  who  kisses  your  very 
royal  feet  and  hands. 

Alonso  Davila. 


Roche]^  of  France,  the  xvith  day  of  June  of  M. 


2.  Statement  Concerning  the  French  Vessels  oe  War 
which  Cruise  the  Sea  of  Spain. 

Translated.from  the  original  in  the  Archivo  de  Indicts  at  Seville,  in  the  same  hand,  says 
Dr.  D.  Francisco  Xuarez,  the  ancient  archivero,  as  the  letter  of  Alonso  Davila  addressed 
from  Rochelle  to  the  emperor . The  hand  writing  is  most  difficult  to  make  out.  The 

amounts  marked  cn  may  intend  ccc,  and  ci  two  cc. 

* 

The  French  vessels  of  war  which  cruise  the  sea  of  Spain 
as  far  as  Andalusia,  of  which  Jn.  Florin  le  Diejpa  is  captain. 

First,  a large  ship  cii.  tons,  in  which  are  cn  men  — the 
half  soldiers,  and  the  other  half  sailors ; carries  xx  pieces 


166 


VERRAZZANO. 


of  artillery  of  brass,  besides  others  of  iron,  with  munitions 
and  victuals  in  large  quantity. 

Another  vessel,  built  in  Vizcaya,  captured  by  the  French 
of  ci  tons. 

Another  vessel  of  ci  tons,  made  in  Britany. 

Five  galleons  — the  largest  of  lxx  tons,  another  of  lx, 
another  of  1,  another  of  xl,  made  in  Vizcaya,  another  of  xl, 
which  are  also  provided  with  cc  men  of -war,  being  of  the 
French  soldiers  who  were  in  Tuenteravia.  They  have  be- 
sides full  supply  of  men  & of  artillery,  munition  and 
victuals  for  one  year ; and,  it  is  said,  that  this  armada  goes 
direct  to  Andalusia,  to  run  that  coast  and  take  what  may 
come  from  the  Indias ; for  this  is  the  same  armada  that  last 
year  took  the  cxxm  ducats  that  were  coming,  consequently, 
it  is  necessary  that  His  Majesty  should  have  an  armada  in 
Andalusia  to  go  to  meet  this  one  of  France,  and  not  suffer 
it  to  do  mischief. 


APPENDIX. 


167 


V. 

1.  Letter  from  the  Judge  of  Cadiz  to  Charles  V,  giving 
the  Names  of  the  Principal  Persons  Captured  with 
Juan  Florin,  and  of  his  Death. 

Translated  from  the  original,  in  the  Archivo  general  in  Simancos. 

Estado:  Legajo  13,  fol.  346. 

Sacred  Caesarean  Catholic  Majesty. 

• 

The  Licentiate  Juan  de  Giles  your  Resident  Judge  in  the 
City  of  Cadiz  reports  what  has  been  done  in  the  taking  of 
Juan  Florin,  a Freifbh  corsair,  and  others,  made  prisoners 
with  him.  Before  receiving  a cedula  signed  by  Your  Majesty 
at  Lerma,  the  thirteenth  of  last  month,  knowing  that  there 
were  some  differences  of  opinion  among  those  making  the 
capture,  I labored,  and  with  success,  to  induce  them  to  bring 
Juan  Florin,-  Monsr.  de  la  Sala,  Monsr  Juan  de  Mensieris, 
Michel  and  a page  of  Juan  Florin  before  Your  Majesty,  to 
avoid  certain  difficulties  that  were  impending.  This  was 
done  by  Bartolome  del  Alamo,  high-sheriff  of  said  City, 
with  six  persons,  one  from  each  ship  engaged  in  the  cap- 
ture. These  took  their  departure  on  the  15th  of  last  month, 
carrying  their  prisoners  to  court;  and  by  virtue  of  the 
cedula  of  Your  Majesty,  I caused  the  delivery  to  me  of  the 
remaining  French  to  be  kept  securely  as  Your  Highness 
required.  One  hundred  and  twenty  or  one  hundred  and 
thirty  of  them  were  given  up,  and  were  in  custody  when  a 
certain  dispatch  came  to  hand  from  your  Counsel  on  the 
twenty  seventh  of  last  month.  In  obedience  thereto,  I 
ordered  the  chief  Alcalde  of  said  city  to  proceed  against 
these  in  my  power,  agreeably  to  what  was  commanded  me 
by  your  Counsel ; and  with  the  utmost  speed  I came  on  in 
pursuit  of  Juan  Florin  to  Colmenar  de  Arenas  where  were 
executed  on  his  person  the  laws  of  your  kingdom.  Monsr 


168 


VERRAZZANO. 


de  Mensieris,  Michel  and  Gile  I condemned  perpetually  to 
the  galleys;  and  because  the  High  Sheriff  and  the  Viz- 
caynos  left  Monsr  de  la  Sale  at  the  point  of  death  with  Juan 
Lopez  de  Qumaya,  a Vizcaino,  who  go  by  another  road,  I 
send  the  High  Sheriff  for  him  while  I return  to  Cadiz  to 
make  provision  for  things  not  done  in  a manner  best  befit- 
ting the  royal  service. 

In  pursuance  of  your  Majesty’s  order  I take  especial  care 
that  no  person  ransom  or  conceal  himself.  Those  of  con- 
sideration, captured  with  Juan  Florin  are  Monsr  de  la  Sala, 
doctor  indiscretis,  a native  of  Paris,  Monsr  Juan  de  Men- 
sieris,  a native  of  Turenne,  son  of  Martin  Mensieris,  who 
has  an  income  of  two  hundred  ducats,  Monsr  de  Londo,  a 
native  of  Lombardy,  son  of  a gentleman,  a Baron,  native 
of  Venice,  Moife1’  de  Lane,  second  son  of  Monsr  de  Lane, 
Monsr  Vipar,  a native  of  Drumar,  son  of  Monsr  Vipar,  who 
is  rich,  and  Monsr  Fasan.  * 

S.  C.  C.  M.  I kiss  the  sacred  feet  of  Your  Majesty. 

Licenciado  Giles. 


2.  Letter  of  the  Judge  of  Cadiz,  in  Answer  to  a Royal 
Missive,  Stating  by  whom  Juan  Florin  was  Captured, 
and  his  Execution. 

£ 

Translated  from  the  original  in  the  Archivo  general  in  Simancas. 

Estado  : Legajo  13,  fol.  345. 

Sacred  Caesarean  Catholic  Majesty : 

The  Licentiate  Giles,  Resident  Judge  in  the  City  of  Cadiz, 
in  compliance  with  what  your  Majesty  required  by  your 
cedula  that  it  should  be  stated  who  captured  J uan  Florin 
and  his  accomplices,  answers  that  Martin  Yrigar,  Antonio 
de  Qurnaya,  Juan  Martinez  de  Arigabalo,  Martin  Perez  de 
Leabur,  Saba  de  Ysasa,  Juan  de  Galarza,  Captains  of  their 
galleons  and  ships,  with  their  people,  were  those  who  cap- 
tured Juan  Florin  in  the  manner  that  they  will  relate,  and 
brought  him  to  the  Bay  of  Cadiz.  I went  directly  to  their 


APPENDIX, 


169 


galleons,  and  to  my  requirement  they  answered  that  they 
would  keep  him  in  safety,  that  they  desired  all  for  your 
service ; and  this  notwithstanding  that  the  said  Juan  Florin 
^promised  them  thirty  thousand  ducats  to  be  released.  The 
captains  of  the  fleet  of  Portugal  who  were  cruising  at  sea 
in  quest  of  him  at  the  same  place  in  which  he  was  taken 
a^o  offered  ten  thousand  ducats  for  him  that  they  might 
take  him  to  their  king,  and  oilier  offers  were  made,  none  of 
which  they  would  accept,  but,  unitedly,  with  the  sheriff 
of  that  city,  took  him  to  Your  Majesty,  like  good  and  loyal 
servants.  And  when  they  arrived  at  Puerto  del  Pico,  find- 
ing Your  Majesty  had  commanded  that  he  and  his  said  ac- 
complices should  be  given  up  to  me  at  once,  they  delivered 
and  I executed  the  law  upon  them. 

Those  captains  have  sustained  much  injury  and  have 
been  at  much  cost,  as  I am  witness.  They  ‘arrived  with 
their  ships  broken,  the  sails  rent,  the  castles  carried  away. 
They  had  spent  much  in  munition  and  powder,  and  for  the 
sustenance  of  those  French  before  they  delivered  them  to 
me.  When  they  arrived  in  the  bay  they  were  greatly  re- 
duced and  hungered,  having  exhausted  their  stores  by  giv- 
ing to  the  French.  Much  wou!4  it  be  for  the  service  of 
Your  Majesty  that  those  Captains  should  be  satisfied  for 
their  losses  and  rewarded  which  I have  promised  them,  as 
Your  Highness  desired  by  your  cedula,  that  others  seeing 
how  they  are  honored  may  be  encouraged  in  the  royal  ser- 
vice. Thus  much  I entreat  that  Your  Majesty  will  order 
done  for  the  loyalty  I know  those  captains  bear  to  your 
service,  and  because  they  are  persons  by  whom  you  paay 
be  much  served. 

S.  C.  C.  M.  I kiss  the  sacred  feet  of  your  Highness. 

Licenciado  Giles. 


22 


170 


VERRAZZANO. 


VI. 

The  Verrazzano  Letter  according  to  the  Original 
Version. 

Translated  by  Dr.  J.  G.  Cogswell,  from  a copy  of  the  MS.  in  the  Magliabechian  library 
in  Florence,  and  printed  in  the  Collections  of  the  New  York  Historical 
Society.  Second  Series.  Yol.  1,  pp.  41-51.  , 

Captain  John  de  Verrazzano  to  His  Most  Serene 
Majesty  the  King  of  France,  writes : 1 

Since  the  tempests  which  we  encountered  on  the  north- 
ern coasts,  I have  not  written  to  your  most  Serene  and 
Christian  Majesty  concerning  the  four  ships  sent  out  by 
your  orders  on  the  ocean  to  discover  new  landsj  because  I 
thought  you  must  have  been  before  apprized  of  all  that  had 
happened,  to  us — that  we  had  been  compelled  by  the  im- 
petuous violence  of  the  winds  to  put  into  Brittany  in  distress 
with  only  the  two  ships  K#rmandy  and  Dolphin ; 2 and  that 
after  having  repaired  these  ships,  we  made  a cruise  in  them, 
well  armed,  along  the  coast  of  Spain,  as  your  Majesty  must 
have  heard,  and  also  of  our  new  plan  of  continuing  our 
begun  voyage  with  the  Dolphin  alone ; from  this  voyage 
being  now  returned,  I proceed  to  give  your  Majesty  an  ac- 
count of  our  discoveries. 

LTliis  introduction  reads  in  the  original : “ Captain  John  da  Verrazzano 
Florentine , of  Normandy,  to  the  most  Serene  Crown  of  France,  relates : ” 

2 The  signification  of  Delfina,  the  name  of  the  Verrazzano  ship  of  dis- 
covery, is  differently  given  by  the  translators.  Hakluyt  renders  it  into 
English  by  the  word  Dolphin,  and  Dr.  Cogswell  here  does  the  same.  But 
this  is  not  correct.  The  Italian  for  dolphin  is  delfino  ; which  also  signifies 
the  dauphin,  or  oldest  son  of  the  king  of  France,  so  called  because  upon 
the  cession  of  Dauphiny  to  the  crown  of  France,  he  became  entitled  to 
wear  the  armorial  device,  which  was  a dolphin,  of  the  princes  of  that  pro- 
vince. Dellina  is  the  feminine  noun  of  Delfino,  in  that  sense,  that  is, 
the  Dauphiness.  M.  Margry  has  so  interpreted  it  in  this  case,  and  accord- 
ingly gives  the  vessel  the  name  of  Dauphine  (Nav.  Fran.,  209),  wThich,  as 
she  is  represented  to  have  belonged  to  France,  would  have  been  her  actual 
name. 


APPENDIX. 


171 


On  the  17th  of  last  January  we  set  sail  from  a desolate 
rock  near  the  island  of  Madeira,  belonging  to  his  most 
Serene  Majesty  the  King  of  Portugal,  with  fifty  men,  hav- 
ing provisions  sufficient  for  eight  months,  arms  and  other 
warlike  munition  and  naval  stores.  Sailing  westward  with 
a light  and  pleasant  easterly  breeze,  in  twenty-five  days  we 
ran  eight  hundred  leagues.  On  the  24th  of  February  we 
encountered  as  violent  a hurricane ’as  any  ship  ever  weath- 
ered, from  which  we  escaped  unhurt  by  the  divine  assist- 
ance and  goodness,  to  the  praise  of  the  glorious  and 
fortunate  name  of  our  good  ship,  that  had  been  able  to 
support  the  violent  tossing,  of  the  waves.  * Pursuing  our 
voyage  towards  the  west,  a little  northwardly,  in  twenty- 
four  days  more,  having  run  four  hundred  leagues,  we 
reached  a new  country,  which  had  never  before  been  seen 
by  any  one,  either  in  ancient  or  modern  times.  At  first  it 
appeared  to  be  very  low,  but  on  approaching  it  to  within 
a quarter  of  a league  from  the  shore  we  perceived,  by  the 
great  fires  near  the  coast,  that  it  was  inhabited.  ‘ We  per- 
ceived that  it  stretched  to  the  south,  and  coasted  along  in 
that  direction  in  search  of  some  port,  in  which  we  might 
come  to  anchor,  and  examine  into  the  nature  of  the  country, 
but  for  fifty  leagues  we  could  find  none  in  which  we  could 
lie  securely.  Seeing  the  coast  still  stretched  to  the  south, 
we  resolved  to  change  our, -course  and  stand,  to  the  north- 
ward, and  as  we  still  had  the  same  difficulty,  we  drew  in 
with  the  land  and  sent  a boat  on  shore.  Many  people  who 
were  seen  coming  to  the  sea-side  fled  at  our  approach,  but 
occasionally  stopping,  they  looked  back  upon  us  with 
astonishment,  and  some  were  at  length  induced,  1^  various 
friendly  signs,  to  come  to  us.  These  showed  the  greatest 
delight  on  beholding  us,  wondering  at  our  dress,  counte- 
nances and  complexion.  They  then  showed  us  by  signs 
where  we  could  more  conveniently  secure  our  boat,  and 
offered  us  some  of  their  provisions.  That  your  Majesty  may 
know  all  that  we  learned,  while  on  shore,  of  their  manners 
and  customs  of  life,  I will  relate  what  we  saw  as  briefly  as 
possible.  They  go  entirely  naked,  except  that  about  the 
loins  they  wear  skins  of  small  animals,  like  martens  fast- 
ened by  a girdle  of  plaited  grass,  to  which  they  tie,  all  round 


172 


VERRAZZANO. 


the  body,  the  tails  of  other  animals  hanging  down  to  the 
knees ; all  other  parts  of  the  body  and  the  head  are  naked. 
Some  wear  garlands  similar  to  birds’  feathers. 

The  complexion  of  these  people  is  black,  not  much  dif- 
ferent from  that  of  the  Ethiopians ; their  hair  is  black  and 
thick,  and  not  very  long,  it  is  worn  tied  back  upon  the  head 
in  the  form  of  a little  tail.  In  person  they  are  of  good  pro- 
portions, of  middle  stature,  a little  above  our  own,  broad 
across  the  breast,  strong  in  the  arms,  and  well  formed  in 
the  legs  and  other  parts  of  the  body ; the  only  exception 
to  their  good  looks  is  that  they  have  broad  faces,  but  not 
all,  however,  as  we  saw  many  that  had  sharp  ones,  with 
large  black  eyes  and  a fixed  expression.  They  are  not 
' very  strong  in  body,  but  acute  in  mind,  active  and  swift 
of  foot,  as  far  as  we  could  judge  by  observation.  In  these 
last  two  particulars  they  resemble  the  people  of  the  east, 
especially  those  the  most  remote.  We  could  not  learn  a 
great  many  particulars  of  their  usages  on  account  of  our 
short  stay  among  them  and  the  distance  of  ouf  ship  from 
the  shore. 

We  found  not  far  from  this  people  another  whose  mode 
of  life  we  judged  to  be  similar.  The  whole  shore  is  co- 
vered with  fine  sand,  about  fifteen  feet  thick,  rising  in  the 
form  of  little  hills  about  fifty  paces  broad.  Ascending 
farther,  we  found  several  arms  of  the  sea  which  make 
in  through  inlets,  washing  the  shores  on  both  sides  as  the 
coast  runs.  An  outstretched  country  appears  at  a little 
distance  rising  somewhat  above  the  sandy  shore  in  beauti- 
ful fields  and  broad  plains,  covered  with  immense  forests 
of  trees,  more  or  less  dense,  too  various  in  colours,  and  too 
delightful  and  charming  in  appearance  to  be  described.  I 
do  not  believe  that  they  are  like  the  Hercynian  forest  or 
the  rough  wilds  of  Scythia,  and  the  northern  regions  full 
of  vines  and  common  trees,  but  adorned  with  palms,  laurels, 
cypresses,  and  other  varieties  unknown  in  Europe,  that 
send  forth  the  sweetest  fragrance  to  a great  distance,  but 
which  wc  could  not  examine  more  closely  for  the  reasons 
before  given,  and  not  on  account  of  any  difficulty  in  tra- 
versing the  woods,  which,  on  the  contrary,  .are  easily 
penetrated. 


APPENDIX. 


173 


As  the  “East”  stretches  around  this  country,  I think  it 
cannot  be  devoid  of  the  same  medicinal  and  aromatic  drugs, 
and  various  riches  of  gold  and  the  like,  as  is  denoted  by 
the  colour  of  the  ground.  It  abounds  also  in  animals,  as 
deer,  stags,  hares,  and  many  other  similar,  and  with  a great 
variety  of  birds  for  every  kind  of  pleasant  and  delightful 
sports.  It  is  plentifully  supplied  with  lakes  and  ponds  of 
running  water,  and  being  in  the  latitude  of  34.  the  air  is 
salubrious,  pure  and  temperate,  and  free  from  the  extremes 
of  both  heat  and  cold.  There  are  no  violent  wincls  in  these 
regions,  the  most  prevalent  are  the  north-west  and  west.  In 
summer,  the  season,  in  which  we  were  there,  the  sky  is  clear, 
with  but  little  rain  : if  fogs  and  mists  are  at  any  time  driven 
in  by  the  south  wind,  they  are  instantaneously  dissipated, 
and  at  once  it  becomes  serene  and  bright  again.  The  sea 
is  calm,  not  boisterous  and  its  waves  are  gentle.  Although 
the  whole  coast  is  low  and  without  harbours,  it  is  not  dan- 
gerous for  navigation,  being  free  from  rocks  and  bold,  so 
that  within  four  or  five  fathoms  from  the  shore  there  is 
twenty-four  feet  of  water  at  all  times  of  tide,  and  this  depth 
constantly  increases  in  a uniform  proportion.  The  hold- 
ing ground  is  so  good  that  no  ship  can  part  her  cable, 
however  violent  the  wind,  as  we  proved  by  experience ; 
for  while  riding  at  anchor  on  the  coast,  we  were  overtaken 
by  a gale  in  the  beginning  of  March,  when  the  winds  are 
high,  *as  is  usual  in  all  countries,  we  found  our  anchor 
broken  before  it  started  from  its  hold  or  moved  at  all. 

We  set  sail  from  this  place,  continuing  to  coast  along 
the  shore,  which  we  found  stretching  out  to  the  west  (east  ?) ; 
the  inhabitants  being  numerous,  we  saw  everywhere  a 
multitude  of  fires.  While  at  anchor  on  this  coast,  there 
being  no  harbour  to  enter,  we  sent  the  boat  on  shore  with 
twenty-five  men  to  obtain  wafer,  but  it  was  not  possible  to 
land  without  endangering  the  boat,  on  account  of  the  im- 
mense high  surf  thrown  up  by  the  sea,  as  it  was  an  open 
roadstead.  Many  of  the  natives  came  to  the  beach,  indicat- 
ing by  various  friendly  signs  that  we  might  trust  ourselves 
on  shore.  One  of  their  nob^e  deeds  of  friendship  deserves 
to  be  made  known  to  your  Majesty.  A young  sailor  was 
attempting  to  swim' ashore  through  the  surf  to  carry  them 


174 


VERRAZZANO. 


some  knick-knacks,  as  little  bells,  looking-glasses,  and 
other  like  trifles;  when  he  came’  near  three  or  four  of  them 
he  tossed  the  things  to  them,  and  turned  about  to  get  back 
to  the  boat,  but  he  was  thrown  over  by  the  waves,  and  so 
dashed  by  them  that  he  lay  as  it  were  dead  upon  the  beach. 
When  these  people  saw  him  in  this  situation,  they  ran  and 
took  him  up  by  the  head,  legs  and  arms,  and  carried  him 
to  a distance  from  the  surf ; the  young  man,  finding  him- 
self borne  ^off  in  this  way  uttered  very  loud  shrieks  in  fear 
and  dismay,  while  they  answered  as  they  could  in  their 
language,  showing  him  that  he  had  no  cause  for  fear. 
Afterwards  they  laid  him  down  at  the  foot  of  a little  hill, 
when  they  took  off  his  shirt  and  trowsers,  and  examined 
him,  expressing  the  greatest  astonishment  at  the  whiteness 
of  his  skin.  Our  sailors  in  the  boat  seeing  a great  fire 
made  up,  and  their  companion  placGil  very  near  it,  full  of 
fear,  as  is  usual  in  all  cases  of  novelty,  imagined  that  the 
natives  were  about  to  roast  him  for  food.  But  as  soon  as 
he  had  recovered  his  strength  after  a short  stay  with  them, 
showing  by  signs  that  he  wished  to  return  aboard,  they 
hugged  him  with  great  affection,  and  accompanied  him  to 
the  shore,  then  leaving  him,  that  he  might  feel  more  secure, 
they  withdrew  to  a little  hill,  from  which  they  watched 
him  until  he  was  safe  in  the  boat.  This  young  man  re- 
marked 4hat  these  people  were  black  like  the  others,  that 
they  had  shining  skins,  middle  stature,  and  sharpeiafaces, 
and  very  delicate  bodies  and  limbs,  and  that  they  were  in- 
ferior in  strength,  but  quick  in  their  minds;  this  is  all  that 
he  observed  of  them. 

Departing  hence,  and  always  following  the  shore,  which 
stretched  to  the  north,  we  came,  in  the  space  of  fifty  leagues, 
to  another  land,  which  appeared  very  beautiful  and  full  of 
the  largest  forests.  We  approached  it,  and  going  ashore 
with  twenty  men,  we  went  back  from  the  coast  about  two 
leagues,  and  found  that  the  people  had  fled  and  hid  them- 
selves in  the  woods  for  fear.  By  searching  around  we  dis- 
covered in  the  grass  a very  old  woman  and  a young  girl 
of  about  eighteen  or  twenty,  whio  had  concealed  themselves 
for  the  same  reason  ; the  old  woman  carried  two  infants 
on  her  shoulders,  and  behind  her  neck  a little  boy  eight 


APPENDIX. 


175 


years  of  age ; when  we  came  up  to  them  they  began  to 
shriek  and  make  signs  to  the  men  who  had  fled  to  the  woods. 
We  gave  them  a part  of  our  provisions,  which  they  accepted 
with  delight,  hut  the  girl  would  not  touch  any ; every  thing 
we  offered  to  her  being  thrown  down  in  great  anger.  We 
took  the  little  boy  from  the  old  woman  to  carry  with  us  to 
France,  and  would  have  taken  the  girl  also,  who  was  very 
beautiful  and  very  tall,  but  it  was  impossible  because  of  the 
loud  shrieks  she  uttered  as  we  attempted  to  lead  her  away ; 
having  to  pass  some  woods,  and  being  far  from  the  ship, 
we  determined  to  leave  her  ahd  take  the  boy  only.  We 
found  them  fairer  than  the  others,  and  wearing  a covering 
made  of  certain  plants,  which  hung  down  from  the  branches 
of  the  trees,  tying  them  together  with  threads  of  wild 
hemp ; their  heads  are  without  covering  and  of  the  same 
shape  as  the  others.  Their  food  is  a kind  of  pulse  which 
there  abounds,  different  in  colour  and  size  from  ours,  and  of 
a very  delicious  flavour.  Besides  they  take  birds  and  fish 
for  food,  using  snares  and  bows  made  of  hard  wood,  with 
reeds  for  arrows,  in  the  ends  of  which  they  put  the  bones  of 
fish  and  other  animals.  The  animals  in  these  regions  are 
wilder  than  in  Europe  from  being  continually  molested  by 
the  hunters.  We  saw  many  of  their  boats  made  of  one 
tree  twenty  feet  long  and  four  feet  broad,  without  the  aid 
of  stone  or  iron  or  other  kind  of  metal.  In  the  whole 
country,  for  the  space  of  two  hundred  leagues,  which  we 
visited,  we  saw  no  stone  of  any  sort.  To  hollow  out  their 
boats  they  burn  out  as  much  of  a log  as  -is  requisite,  and 
also  from  the  prow  and  stern  to  make  them  float  well  on 
the  sea.  The  land,  in  situation,  fertility  and  beauty,  is  like 
the  other,  abounding  also  in  forests  filled  with  various  kinds 
of  trees,  but  not  of  such  fragrance,  as  it  is  more  northern 
and  colder. 

We  saw  in  this  country  many  vines  growing  naturally, 
which  entwine  about  the  trees,  and  run  up  upon  them  as 
they  do  in  the  plains  of  Lombardy.  These  vines  would 
doubtless  produce  excellent  wine  if  they  were  properly 
cultivated  and  attended  to,  as  we  have  often  seen  the  grapes 
which  they  produce  very  sweet  and  pleasant,  and  not  un- 
like our  own.  They  must  be  held  in  estimation  by  them, 


176 


VERRAZZANO. 


as  they  carefully  remove  the  shrubbery  from  around  them, 
wherever  they  grow,  to  allow  the  fruit  to  ripen  better.  ¥e 
found  also  wild  roses,  violets,  lilies,  and  many  sorts  of  plants 
and  fragrant  flowers  different  from  our  own.  We  cannot 
describe  their  habitations,  as  they  are  in  the  interior  of  the 
country,  but  from  various  indications  we  conclude  they 
must  be  formed  of  trees  and  shrubs.  We  saw  also  many 
grounds  for  conjecturing  that  they  often  sleep  in  the  open 
air,  without  any  covering  but  the  sky.  Of  their  other 
usages  we  know  npthing ; we  believe,  however,  that  all 
the  people  we  were  among  live  in  the  same  way. 

After  having  remained  here  three  days,  riding  at  anchor 
on  the  coast,  as  we  could  find  no  harbour,  we  determined 
to  depart,  and  coast  along  the  shore  to  the  north-east,  keep- 
• ing  sail  on  the  vessel  only  by  day,  and  coming  to  anchor 
by  night.  After  proceeding  one  hundred  leagues,  we  found 
a very  pleasant  situation  among  some  steep  hills,  through 
which  a very  large  river,  deep  at  its  mouth,  forced  its  way 
to  the  sea ; from  the  sea  to  the  estuary  of  the  river,  any 
ship  heavily  laden  might  pass,  with  the  help  of  the  tide, 
which  rises  eight  feet.  But  as  we  were  riding  at  anchor 
in  a good  berth,  we  would  not  venture  up  in  our  vessel, 
without  a knowledge  of  the  mouth ; therefore  we  took  the 
boat,  and  entering  the  river,  we  found  the  country  on 
its  banks  well  peopled,  the  inhabitants  not  differing  much 
from  the  others,  being  dressed  out  with  feathers  of  birds 
of  various  colours.  They  came  towards  us  with  evident 
delight,  raising  loud  shouts  of  admiration,  and  showing  us 
where  we  could  most  securely  land  with  our  boat.  We 
passed  up  this  river,  about  half  a league,  when  we  found  it 
formed  a most  beautiful  lake  three  leagues  i$  circuit,  upon 
which  they  were  rowing  thirty  or  more  of  their  small  boats, 
from  one  shore  to  the  other,  filled  with  multitudes  who 
came  to  see  us.  All  of  a sudden,  as  is  wont  to  happen  to 
navigators,  a violent  contrary  wind  blew  in  from  the  sea, 
and  forced  us  to  return  to  our  ship,  greatly  regretting  to 
leave  this  region  which  seemed  so  commodious  and  de- 
lightful, and  which  we  supposed  must  also  contain  great 
riches,  as  the  hills  showed  many  indications  of  minerals. 
Weighing  anchor,  we  sailed  eighty  (ottanta)  leagues  towards 


APPENDIX. 


177 


the  east,  as  the  coast  stretched  in  that  direction,  and  always 
in  sight  of  it;  at  length  we  discovered  an  island  of  a triangu- 
lar form,  about  teu  leagues  from  the  mainland,  in  size  about 
equal  to  the  island  of  Rhodes,  having  many  hills  covered 
with  trees,  and  well  peopled,  judging  from  th^  great  num- 
ber of  fires  which  we  saw  all  around  its  shores ; we  gave 
it  the  name  of  your  Majesty’s  illustrious  mother. 

We  did  not  land  there,  as  the  weather  was  unfavourable, 
but  proceeded  to  another  place,  fifteen  leagues  distant  from 
the  island,  where  we  found  a Very  excellent  harbour.  Before 
entering  it,  we  saw  about  twenty  small  boats  full  of  people, 
who  came  about  our  ship,  uttering  many  cries  of  astonish- 
ment, but  they  would  not  approach  nearer  than  within  fifty 
paces ; stopping,  they  looked  at  the  structure  of  our  ship, 
our  persons  and  dress,  afterwards  they  all  raised  a loud 
shout  together,  signifying  that  they  were  pleased.  By 
imitating  their  signs,  we  inspired  them  in  some  measure 
with  confidence,  so  that  they  came  near  enough  for  us  to 
toss  to  them  some  little  bells  and  glasses,  and  many  toys, 
which  they  took  and  looked  at,  laughing,  and  then  came 
on  board  without  fear.  Among  them  were  two  kings 
more  beautiful  in  form  and  stature  than  can  possibly  be 
described^  one  was  about  forty  years  old,  the  other  about 
twenty-four,  and  they  were  dressed  in  the  following  man- 
ner : The  oldest  had  a deer’s  skin  around  his  body,  arti- 
ficially wrought  in  damask  figures,  his  head  was  without 
covering,  his  hair  was  tied  back  in  various  knots ; around 
his  neck  he  wore  a large  chain  ornamented  with  many 
stones  of  different  colours.  The  young  man  was  similar 
in  his  general  appearance.  This  is  the  finest  looking  tribe, 
and  the  handsomest  in  their  costumes,  that  we  have  found 
in  our  voyage.  They  exceed  us  in  size,  and  they  are  of  a very 
fair  complexion  (?) ; some  of  them  incline  more  to  a white 
(bronze  ?),  and  others  to  a tawny  colour ; their  faces  are 
sharp,  their  hair  long  and  black,  upon  the  adorning  of 
which  they  bestow  great  pains;  their  eyes  are  black  and 
sharp,  their  expression  mild  and  pleasant,  greatly  resem- 
bling the  antique.  I say  nothing  to  your  Majesty  of  the 
other  parts  of  the  body,  which  are  all  in  good  proportion, 
23 


178 


VERRAZZANO. 


and  such  as  belong  to  well-formed  men.  Their  women 
are  of  the  same  form  and  beauty,  very  graceful,  of  fine 
countenances  and  pleasing  appearance  in  manners  and 
modesty ; they  wear  no  clothing  except  a deer  skin,  orna- 
mented like  j;hose  worn  by  the  men ; some  wear  very  rich 
lynx  sjdns  upon  their  arms,  and  various  ornaments  upon 
their  heads,  composed  of  braids  of  hair,  which  also  hang 
down  upon  their  breasts  on  each  side.  Others  wear  differ- 
ent ornaments,  such  as  the  women  of  Egypt  and  Syria  use. 
The  older  and  the  married  people,  both  men  and  women, 
Wear  many  ornaments  in  their  ears,  hanging  down  in  the 
oriental  manner.  We  saw  upon  them  several  pieces  of 
wrought  copper,  which  is  more  esteemed  by  them  than 
gold,  as  this  is  not  valued  on  account  of  its  colour,  but  is 
considered  by  them  as  the  most  ordinary  of  the  metals — 
yellow  being  the  colour  especially  disliked  by  them ; azure 
and  red  are  those  in  highest  estimation  with  them.  Of 
those  things  which  we  gave  them,  they  prized  most  highly 
the  bells,  azure  crystals,  and  other  toys  to  hang  in  their 
ears  and  about  their  necks ; they  do  not  value  or  care  to 
have  silk  or  gold  stuffs,  or  other  kinds  of  cloth,  nor  imple- 
ments of  steel  or  iron.  When  we  showed  them  our  arms, 
they  expressed  no  admiration,  and  only  asked  how  they 
were  made  ; the  same  was  the  case  with  the  looking-glasses, 
which  they  returned  to  us,  smiling,  as  soon  as  they  had 
looked  at  them.  They  are  very  generous,  giving  away 
whatever  they  have.  We  formed  a great  friendship  with 
them,  and  one  day  we  entered  into  the  port  with  our  ship, 
having  before  rode  at  the  distance  of  a league  from  the  shore, 
as  the  weather  was  adverse.  They  came  off  to  the  ship  with 
a number  of  their  little  boats,  with  their  faces  painted  in 
divers  colours,  showing  us  real  signs  of*jo'y,  bringing  us 
of  their  provisions,  and  signifying  to  us  where  we  could 
bestride  in  safety  with  our  ship;  and  keeping  with  us  until 
we  had  cast  anchor.  We  remained  among  them  fifteen 
days,  to  provide  ourselves  with  many  things  of  which  we 
were  in  want,  during  which  time  they  came  every  day  to 
see  our  ship,  bringing  with  them  their  wives,  of  whom 
they  were  very  careful ; for,  although  they  came  on  board 
themselves,  and  remained  a long  while,  they  made  their 


APPENDIX. 


179 


wives  stay  in  the  boats,  nor  could  we  ever  get  them  on 
board  by  any  entreaties  or  any  presents  we  could  make 
them.  One  of  the  two  kings  often  came  with  his  queen 
and  many  attendants,  to  see  us  for  his  amusement ; but  he 
always  stopped  at  the  distance  of  about  two  hundred  paces 
and  sent  a boat  to  inform  us  of  his  intended  visit,  saying 
they  would  come  and  see  our  ship — this  was  done  for  safety, 
and  as  soon  as  they  had  an  answer  from  us  they  came  off, 
and  remained  awhile  to  look  around ; but  on  hearing  the 
annoying  cries  of  the  sailors,  the  king  sent  the  queen,  with 
her  attendants,  in  a very  light  boat,  to  wait,  near  an  island 
a quarter  of  a league  distant  from  us,  while  he  remained  a 
long  time  on  boafd,  talking  with  us  by  signs,  and  express- 
ing his  fanciful  notions  about  every  thing  in  the  ship,  and 
asking  the  use  of  all.  After  imitating  our  modes  of  saluta- 
tion, and  tasting  our  food,  he  courteously  took  leave  of  us. 
Sometimes,  when  out*  men  staid  two* or  three  days  on  a 
small  island,  near  the  ship,  for  their  various  necessities,  as 
sailors  are  wont  to  do,  he  came  with  seven  or  eight  of  his 
attendants,  to  enquire  about  our  movements,  often  asking 
us  if  we  intended  to  remain  there  long,  and  offering  us 
every  thing  at  his  command,  and  then  he  would  shoot  with 
his  bow,  and  run  up  and  down  with  his  people,  making 
great  sport  for  us.  We  often  went  five  or  six  leagues  into 
the  interior,  and  found  the  country  as  pleasant  as  is  possi- 
ble to  conceive,  adapted  to  cultivation  of  , every  kind, 
whether  of  corn,  wine  or  oil ; there  are  open  plains  twenty- 
five  or  thirty  leagues  in  extent,  entirely  free  from,  trees  or 
other  hinderances,  and  of  so  great  fertility,  that  whatever 
is  sown  there  will  yield  an  excellent  crop.  On  entering 
the  woods,  we  observed  that  they  might  all  be  traversed  by 
an  army  ever  so  numerous;  the  trees  of  which  they  were 
composed,  were  oaks,  cypresses,  and  others,  unknown  in 
Europe.  We  found,  also,  apples,  plumbs,  filberts,  and 
many  other  fruits,  but  all  of  a different  kind  from  ours. 
The  animals,  which  are  in  great  numbers,  as  stags,  deer, 
lynxes,  and  many  other  species,  are  taken  by  snares,  and 
by  bows,  the  latter  being  their  chief  implement;  their 
arrows  are  wrought  with  great  beauty,  and  for  the  heads 
of  them,  they  use  emery,  jasper,  hard  marble,  and  other 


180  # VERRAZZANO. 

sharp  stones,  in  the  place  of  iron.  They  also  use  the  same 
kind  of  sharp  stones  in  cutting  down  trees,  and  with  them 
they  construct  their  boats  of  single  logs,  hollowed  out  with 
admirable  skill,  and- sufficiently  commodious  to  contain 
ten  or  twelve  persons ; their  oars  are  short,  and  broad  at 
the  end,  and  are  managed  in  rowing  by  force  of  the  arms 
alone,  with  perfect  security,  and  as  nimbly  as  they  choose. 
We  saw  their  dwellings,  which  are  of  a circular  form,  of 
about  ten  or  twelve  paces  in  circumference,  made  of  logs 
split  in  halves,  without  any  regularity  of  architecture,  and 
covered  with  roofs  of  straw,  nicely  put  on,  which  protect 
them  from  wind  and  rain.  There  is  no  doubt  that  they 
would  build  stately  edifices  if  they  had  workmen  as  skilful 
as  ours,  for  the  whole  sea-coast  abounds  in  shining  stones, 
crystals,  and  alabaster,  and  for  the  same  reason  it  has  ports 
and  retreats  for  animals.  They  change  their  habitations 
from  place  to  place  as  circumstances  of  situation  and  sea- 
son may  require  ^ this  is  easily  done,  as  they  have  only  to 
take' with  them  their  matsj  and  they  have  other  houses 
prepared  at  once.  The  father  and  the  whole  family  dwell 
together  in  one  house  in  great  numbers ; in  some  we  saw 
twenty-five  or  thirty  persons.  Their  food  is  pulse,  as  with 
the  other  tribes,  which  is  here  better  than  elsewhere,  and 
more  carefully  cultivated ; in  the  time  of  sowing  they  are 
governed  by  the  moon,  the  sprouting  of  grain,  and  many 
other  ancient  usages.  - They  live  by  hunting  and  fishing, 
and  they  are  long-lived.  If  they  fall  sick,  they  cure  them- 
selves without  medicine,  by  the  heat  of  the  fire,  and  their 
death  at  last  comes  from  extreme  old  age.  We  judge 
them  to  be  very  affectionate  and  charitable  towards  their 
relatives — making'  loud  lamentations  in  their  adversity, 
and  in  their  misery  calling  to  mind  all  their  good  fortune. 
At  their  departure  out  of  life,  their  relations  mutually  join 
in  weeping,  mingled  with  singing,  for  a long  while.  This 
is  all  that  we  could  learn  of  them.  This  region  is  situated 
in  the  parallel  of  Rome,  being  41°  40'  of  north  latitude, 
but  much  colder  from  accidental  circumstances,  and  not 
by  nature,  as  I shall  hereafter  explain  to  your  Majesty* 
and  confine  myself  at  present  to  the  description  of  its  local 
situation.  It  lool^s  towards  the  south,  on  which  side  the 


APPENDIX. 


181 


harbour  is  half  a league  broad;  afterwards  upon  entering  it, 
the  extent  between  the  east  (oriente)  and  north  is  twelve 
leagues,1  and  then  enlarging  itself  it  forms  a very  large 
bay,  twenty  leagues  in  circumference,  in  which  are  five 
small  islands,  of  great  fertility  and  beauty,  covered  with 
large  and  lofty  trees.  Among  these  islands  any  fleet,  how- 
ever large,  might  ride  safely,  without  fear  of  tempests  or 
other  dangers.  Turning  towards  the  south,  at  the  en- 
trance of  the  harbour,  on  both  sides,  there  are  very  pleasant 
hills,  aifd  many  streams  of  clear  water,  which  flow  down 
to  the  sea.  In  the  midst  of  the  entrance  there  is  a rock 
of  freestone,  formed  by  nature,  and  suitable  for  the  con- 
struction of  any  kind  of  machine  or  bulwark  for  the. 
defence  of  the  harbour. 

Having  supplied  ourselves  with  every  thing  necessary, 
on  the  sixth  (sei)  of  May  we  departed  from  the  port,  and  sailed 
one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues,  keeping  so  close  to  the 
coast  as  never  to  lose  it  from  our  sight ; the  nature  of  the 
country  appeared  much  the  same  as  before,  but  the  moun- 
tains were  a little  higher,  and  all  in  appearance  rich  in 
minerals.  We  did  not  stop  to  land  as  the  weather,  was 
very  favourable  for  pursuing  our  voyage,  and  the  country 
presented  no  variety.  The  shore  stretched  to  the  east, 
and  fifty  leagues  beyond  more  to  the  no^h,  where  we 
found  a more  elevated  country,  full  of  very  thick  woods 
of  fir  trees,  cypresses  and  the  like,  indicative  of  a cold  cli- 
mate. The  people  were  entirely  different  from  the  others 
we  had  seen,  whom  we  had  found  kind  and  gentle,  but 
these  were  so  rude  and  barbarous  that  we  were  unable  by 
any  signs  we  could  make,  to  hold  communication  with 
them.  They  clothe  themselves  in  the  skins  of  bears, 
lynxes,  seals  and  other  animals.  Their  food,  as  far  as  we 
could  judge  by  several  visits  to  their  dwellings,  is  obtained 
by  hunting  and  fishing,  and  fruits,  which  are  a sort  of 
root  of  spontaneous  growth.  They  have  no  pulse,  and  we 
saw  no  signs  of  cultivation  ; the  land  appears  sterile  and 
unfit  for  growing  of  fruit  or  grain  of  any  kind.  If  we 
wished  at  any  time  to  traffick  with  them,  they  came  to 
the  sea  shore  and  stood  upon  the  rocks,  from  which  they 


1 See  ante , p.  51,  note. 


182 


VERRAZZANO. 


lowered  down  by  a cord  to  our  boats  beneath  whatevef 
they  had  to  barter,  continually  crying  out  to  us,  not  to 
come  nearer,  and  instantly  demanding  from  us  that  which 
was  to  be  given  in  exchange ; they  took  from  us  only 
knives,  fish  hooks  and  sharpened  steel.  No  regard  was 
paid  to  our  courtesies ; when  we  had  nothing  left  to  ex- 
change with  them,  the  men  at  our  departure  made  the 
most  brutal  signs  of  disdain  and  contempt  possible. 
Against  their  will  we  penetrated  two  or  three  leagues 
into  the  interior  with  twenty-five  men ; when  we  came  to 
the  shore,  they  shot  at  us  with  their  arrows,  raising  the 
most  horrible  cries  and  afterwards  fleeing  to  the  woods. 
In  this  region  we  found  nothing  extraordinary  except  vast 
forests  and  some  metalliferous  hills,  as  we  infer  from  see- 
ing that  many  of  the  people  wore  copper  ear-rings.  De- 
parting from  thence,  we  kept  along  the  coast,  steering 
north-east,  and  found  the  country  more  pleasant  and  open, 
free  from  woods,  and  distant  in  the  interior  we  saw  lofty 
mountains,  but  none  which  extended  to  the  shore.  With- 
in fifty  leagues  • we  discovered  thirty-two  islands,  all  near 
the  main  land,  small  and  of  pleasant  appearance,  but  high 
and  so  disposed  as  to  afford  excellent  harbours  *and  chan- 
nels, as  we  see  in  the  Adriatic  gulph,  near  Illyria  and 
Dalmatia.  We  had  no  intercourse  with  the  people,  but 
we  judge  that  they  .were  similar  in  nature  and  usages  to 
those  we  were  last  among.  After  sailing  between  east 
and  north  the  distance  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues 
more,  and  finding  our  provisions  and  naval  stores  nearly 
exhausted,  we  took  in  wood  and  water  and  determined  to 
return  to  France,  having  discovered  502, 1 that  is  700  (sic) 
leagues  of  unknown  lands. 

As  to  the  religious  faith  of  all  these  tribes,  not  under- 
standing their  language,  we  could  not  discover  either  by 
sign  or  gestures  any  thing  certain.  It  seemed  to  us  that 
they  had  no  religion  or  laws,  or  any  knowledge  of  a 
First  Cause  or  Mover,  that  they  worshipped  neither  the 
heavens,  stars,  sun,  moon  nor  other  planets;  nor  could 
we  learn  if  they  were  given  to  any  kind  of  idolatry,  or 
offered  any  sacrifices  or  supplications,  or  if  they  have 


1 See  ante , p.  58,  note. 


APPENDIX. 


183 


temples  or  houses  of  prayer  in  their  villages;  — our  con- 
clusion was,  that  they  have  no  religious  belief  whatever, 
but  live  in  this  respect  entirely  free.  All  which  proceeds 
from  ignorance,  as  they  are  very  easy  to  be  persuaded, 
and  imitated  us  with  earnestness  and  fervour  in  all  which 
they  saw  us  do  as  Christians  in  our  acts  of  worship. 

It  remains  for  me  to  lay  before  your  Majesty  a Cosmo- 
graphical  exposition  of  our  voyage.  Taking  our  depart- 
ure, as  I before  observed,  from  the  above  mentioned  desert 
rocks,  which'  lie  on  the  extreme  verge  of  the  west,  as 
known  to  the  ancients,  in  the  meridian  of  the  Fortunate 
Islands,  and  in  the  latitude  of  32  degrees  north  from  the 
equator,  and  steering  a westward  course,  we  had  run, 
when  we  first  made  land,  a distance  of  1200  leagues  or 
4800  miles,  reckoning,  according  to  nautical  usage,  four 
.miles  to  a league.  This  distance  calculated  geometrically, 
upon  the  usual  ratio  of  the  diameter  to  the  circumference* 
of  the  circle,  gives  92  degrees ; for  if  we  take  114  degrees 
as  the  chord  of  an  arc  of  a great  circle,  we  have  by  the 
same  ratio  95  deg.,  as  the  chord  of  an  arc  on  the  parallel 
of  34  degrees,  being  that  on  which  we  first  made  land,  and 
300  degrees  as  the  circumference  of  the  whole  circle  pass- 
ing through  this  plane.  Allowing  then,  as  actual  obser- 
vations show,  that  62f  terrestrial  miles  correspond  to  a 
celestial  degree,  we  find  the  whole  circumference  of  300 
deg.,  as  just  given,  to  be  18,759  miles,  which  divided*  by 
360,  makes  the  length  of  a degree  of  longitude  in  the 
parallel  of  34  degrees  to  be  52  miles,  and  that  is  the  true 
measure.  Upon  this  basis,  1200  leagues,  or  4800  miles 
meridional  distance,  on  the  parallel  of  34,  give  92  degrees, 
and  so  many  therefore  have  we  sailed  farther  to  the  west 
than  was  known  to  the  ancients.  During  our  voyage  we 
had  no  lunar  eclipses  or  like  celestial  phenomenas,  we 
therefore  determined  our  progress  from  the  difference  of 
longitude,  which  we  ascertained  by  various  instruments, 
by  taking  the  sun’s  altitude  from  day  to  day,  and  by 
calculating  geometrically  the  distance  run  by  the  ship 
from  one  horizon  to  another ; all  these  observations,  as 
also  the  ebb  and  flow  of  the  sea  in  all  places,  were  noted 
in  a little  book,  which  may  prove  serviceable  to  navi- 


184 


VERRAZZANO. 


gators ; they  arb  communicated  to  your  Majesty  in  the 
hope  of  promoting  science. 

My  intention  in  this  voyage  was  to  reach  Cathay,  on 
the  extreme  coast  of  Asia,  expecting  however,  to  find  in 
the  newly  discovered  land  some  such  an  obstacle,  as  they 
have  proved  to  be,  yet  I did  not  doubt  that  I should 
penetrate  by  some  passage  to  the  eastern  ocean.  It  was 
the  opinion  of  the  ancients,  that  our  oriental  Indian  ocean 
is  one  and  without  interposing  land;  Aristotle  supports 
it  by  arguments  founded  on  various  probabilities ; but  it 
is  contrary  to  that  of  the  moderns  and  shown  to  be  errone- 
ous by  experience ; the  country  which  has  been  disco- 
vered, and  which  was  unknown  to  the  ancients,  is  another 
world  compared  with  that  before  known,  being  manifestly 
larger  than  our  Europe,  together  with  Africa  and  perhaps 
Asia,  if  we  might  rightly  estimate  its  extent,  as  shall  now 
be  briefly  . explained  to  your  Majesty.  The  Spaniards 
have  sailed  south  beyond  the  equator  on  a meridian  20 
degrees  west  of  the  Fortunate  Islands  to  the  latitude  of 
54,  and  there  still  found  land ; turning  about  they  steered 
northward  on  the  Same  meridian  and  along  the  coast  to 
the  eighth  degree  of  latitude  near  the  equator,  and  thence 
along  the  coast  more  to  the  west  and  north-west,  to  the 
latitude  of  21°,  without  finding  a termination  to  the  con- 
tinent; they  estimated  the  distance  run  as.  89  degrees, 
which,  added  to  the  20  first  run  west  of  the  Canaries, 
make  109  degrees  and  so  far  west ; they  sailed  from  the 
meridian  of  these  islands,  but  this  may  vary  somewhat 
from  truth ; we  did  not  make  this  voyage  and  therefore 
cannot  speak  from  experience ; we  calculated  it  geometri- 
cally from  the  observations  furnished  by  many  navigators, 
who  have  made  the  voyage  and  affirm  the  distance  to  be 
1600  leagues,  due  allowance  being  made  for  the  devia- 
tions of  the  ship  from  a.  straight  course,  by  reason  of 
contrary  winds.  I hope  that  we  shall  now  obtain  certain 
information  on  these  points,  by  new  voyages  to  be  made 
on  the  same  coasts.  But  to  return  to  ourselves ; in  the 
voyage  which  we  have  made  by  order  of  your  Majesty,  in 
addition  to  the  92  degrees  we  run  towards  the  west  from 
our  point  of  departure,  before  we  reached  land  in  the 


APPENDIX. 


185 


latitude  of  84,  we  have  to  count  300  leagues  which  we  ran 
north-east-wardly,  and  400  nearly  east  along  the  coast 
before  we  reached  the  50th  parallel  of  north  latitude,  the 
point  where  we  turned  our  course  from  the  shore  towards 
home.  Beyond  this  point  the  Portuguese  had  already 
sailed  as  far  north  as  the  Arctic  circle,  without  coming 
to  the  termination  of  the  land.  Thus  adding  the  degrees 
of  south  latitude  explored,  which  are  54,  to  those  of  the 
north,  which  are  66,  the  sum  is  120,  and  therefore,  more 
than  are  embraced  in  the  latitude  of  Africa  and  Europe, 
for  the  north  point  of  Norway,  which  is  the  extremity  of 
Europe,  is  in  71  north,  and  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope, 
which  is  the  southern  extremity  of  Africa,  is  in  35  south, 
and  their  sum  is  only  106,  and  if  the  breadth  of  this  newly 
discovered  country  corresponds  to  its  extent  of  sea  coast, 
it  doubtless  exceeds  Asia  in  size.  In  this  way  we  find 
that  the  land  forms  a much  larger  portion  of  our  globe 
than  the  ancients  supposed,  who  maintained,  contrary  to 
mathematical  reasoning,  that  it  was  less  than  the  water, 
whereas  actual  experience  proves  the  reverse,  so  that  we 
judge  in  respect  to  extent  of  surface  the- land  covers  as 
much  space  as  the  water ; and  I hope  more  clearly  and 
more  satisfactorily  to  point  out  and  explain  to  your 
Majesty  the  great  extent  of  that  new  land,  or  new  world, 
of  which  I have  been  speaking.  The  continent  of  Asia 
and  Africa,  we  know  for  certain  is  joined  to  Europe  at 
the  north  in  Norway  and  Russia,  which  disproves  the  idea 
of  the  ancients  that  all  this  part  had  been  navigated  from 
the  Cimbric  Chersonesus,  eastward  as  far  as  the  Caspian 
Sea.  They  also  maintained  that  the  whole  continent  was 
surrounded  by  two  seas  situate  to  the  east  and  west  of  it, 
which  seas  in  fact  do  not  surround  either  of  the  two  con- 
tinents, for  as  we  have  seen  above,  the  land  of  the  south- 
ern hemisphere  '*at  the  latitude  of  54  extends  eastwardly 
an  unknown  distance,  and  that  of  the  northern  passing 
the  66th  parallel  turns  to  the  east,  and  has  no  termination 
as  high  as  the  70th.  In  a short  time,  I hope,  we  shall 
have  more  certain  knowledge  of  these  things,  by  the  aid 
of  your  Majesty,  whom  I pray  Almighty  God  to  prosper 
24 


186 


VERRAZZANO. 


in  lasting  glory,  that  we  may  see  the  most  important 
results  of  this  our  cosmography  in  the  fulfilment  of  the 
holy  words  of  the  Gospel. 

On  board  the  ship  Dolphin,  in  the  port  of  Dieppe  in 
Normandy,  the  8th  of  July,  1524. 

Your  humble  servitor, 

Janus  Verrazzanus. 


ERRATA.  # 

On  pages  49,  72,  79,  and  118  for  Dauphiny  read  Dauphine. 


« 


From  Pliotogr£|his 


of  the  Original,  preserved  in  die  MUSEO  BOROIANO  at  the  Collegio  Romano  de  Propaganda  Fide  in  Rome. 


INDEX. 


A. 

Acadia,  granted  to  the  Sienr  de  Monts,  40. 

Adventurers  with  Verrazzano  at  the  time  of  his  capture,  148,  167. 

Agnese,  Baptista,  his  map  showing  the  western  sea,  88,  100,  105. 

Ailly,  Pierre  d’,  table  of  climates,  68. 

Albemarle,  North  Carolina,  coast  of,  48. 

Alfonse,  Jean,  chief  pilot  of  Roberval,  his  cosmography,  37;  description 
and  chart  of  Norumbega,  38  ; explores  the  coast  of  New  England,  39 ; 
his  book  of  voyages,  39.  , 

Algonkin  Indians,  their  birch-bark  canoe,  75,  83  ; not  cannibals,  149. 

Alonzo,  Domingo,  sent  to  the  Azores  for  the  treasure,  143. 

Andrade,  extract  froih  his  Chronicle  of  Joao  in,  in  relation  t£  Verrazzano, 
139, 145. 

Ango,  Jean,  father  and  son,  rich  and  powerful  merchants  of  Dieppe,  con- 
nected with  Verrazzano,  35,  86, 144,  146,  158,  160. 

Anonymous  Portuguese  chart,  followed  by  the  Verrazano  map,  97,  98. 

Anonymous  Spanish  chart,  of  1527,  showing  the  exploration  of  Gomez,  123. 

Arcangeli,  M.,  discourse  on  Verrazzano,  13,  17, 108. 

Arctic  Circle,  Portuguese  discoveries  towards  the,  58,  66,-  67. 

Arecifes,  on  Ribero’s  map,  Cape  Sable  in  Nova  Scotia,  131. 

Aubert,  Thomas,  of  Dieppe,  voyage  to  Newfoundland  in  1508,  carries  Indians 
thence  to  France,  62-3,  75,  87. 

Avorobagra,  on  the  French  map,  supposed  to  be  the  same  as  IJorumbega,  43. 

Ay  lion,  first  expedition  in  1521  to  the  river  Jordan  or  Santee  carries  sixty 
Indian's  thence  to  St.  Domingo,  78,  123 ; he  takes  one  to  Spain,  124 ; 
second  expedition  in  1526  explores  no  further  north  than  the  Jordan, ' 
123-4 ; dies  at  St.  Helena,  123. 


B. 

Bacalao,  Bacalaos,  Baccalaos  Bacallaos  and  Baccallaos,  or  Newfoundland 
61,  94,  122, 131. 

Badajos,  Gomez  a member  of  the  junta,  120. 

Barcia,  description  of  the  exploration  of  Menendez  Marquez  to  the  Chesa- 
peake, 50  ; identifies  Verrazzano  with  Juan  Florin,  136,  148. 

Basle,  Sebastian  Munster’s  edition  o£  Ptolemy,  printed  at,  101,  103-4. 
Beaufort,  N.  C.,  an  accessible  harbor,  48. 


188 


VERRAZZANO. 


* 


Belleforest,  Frangois  de,  the  first  historian  in  France  who  mentions  in 
print  the  Verrazzano  voyage,  28,  29. 

Belle  Isle,  route  of  Cartier  through  the  straits,  29,  62. 

Bergeron,  takes  his  account  of  the  Verrazzano  voyage  from  Lescarbot,  29. 
Block  island,  not  intended  by  the  island  of  Louise,  58. 

Bodleian  library,  portolano  based  on  the  Ribero  map,  106. 

Borgia,  Cardinal  Stefano,  possessor  of  the  Verrazano  map,  91. 

Bourbon,  Charles  de,  the  constable,  invades  France  with  Pescara,  21,  22. 
Boy  the  Indian,  mentioned  in  the  Verrazzano  letter,  5,  20. 

Brazil,  threatened  voyage  to,  by  Verrazzano,  139  ; voyage  abandoned,  145. 
Bretons,  early  discoveries  in  North  America,  62,  65-8,  86. 

Brevoort,  J.  C.,  notes  on  the  Verrazano  map,  4,  95,  102. 

Bristol,  bark  canoe  taken  to,  in  1603,’  75. 

Brittany,  arms  of,  94 ; fishermen  of,  100. 


c. 

Cabot,  Sebastian,  72,  113,  117 ; his  opinion  of  the  insular  character  of 
Northern  America,  119,  120, 134, 

Cabral,  publication  in  France  of  his  discoveries,  33. 

California,  black  Indians  found  in,  78. 

Canada,  discovered  by  Jacques  Cartier,  32,  34-6 ; grant  of,  to  Marquis  de 
la  Roche,  37  ; first  permanent  settlements  in,  by  Sieur  de  Monts,  40-1. 

Canoes,  birch-bark,  peculiar  to  the  northern  Indians,  75,  83,  90. 

Cape  Breton,  38,  57-8,  60-3 ; why  so  called,  86 ; 97-8,  104, 131. 

Cape  Cod,  52,  54,  56,  75  ; C.  de  Muchas  Yllas  on  the  Ribero  map,  130-2. 

Cape  de  Ras,  86,  90 ; Cabo  Raso,  61,  94,  131 ; Cape  Race,  57,  59,  62,  131. 

Cape  Roman,  S.  C.,  southerly  limit  of  the  Verrazzano  voyage,  1 ; Cape  de 
S.  Roman  on  th’e  Ribero  map,  130. 

Cape  Fear,  the  Verrazzano  landfall  near,  47  ; C.  Traffalgar  on  the  Ribero 
map,  130. 

Cape  Hatteras,  48  ; C.  de  S.  Juan  on  the  Ribero  map,  130. 

Cape  Sable,  Npva  Scotia,  Cap  de  Noroveregue  on  the  chart  of  Alfonse,  38, 
56  ; Arecifes  on  the  map  of  Ribero,  131-2.  • 

Cape  St.  Vincent,  treasure  captured  by  Verrazzano  near,  143. 

Caravel,  depicted,  9 ; described,  47-8: 

Carli,  Fernando,  alleged  letter  to  his  father,  11,  16, 17,  155 ; his  version  of 
the  Verrazzano  letter,  11,  12,  65,  170. 

Caro,  Annibal,  letter  mentioning  a Verrazzano  map,  91,  108,  115. 

Cartier  Jacques,  voyages  through  the  straits  of  Belle-Isle,  29, 39  ; silent  as 
to  Verrazzano,  30  ; his  voyages,  32,  34,  44,  46,  59,  103,  105 ; inland 
sea  mentioned  by  him,  107. 

Castles,  gulf  of  the,  or  straits  of  Belle-Isle,  86,  90. 

Cathay,  17,  97,  119  ; proposed  voyage  of  Verrazzano,  141,  145. 

Catholic  navigators,  custom  in  regard  to  naming  places,  46. 

Cespedes,  history  of  islands  of  the  world,  121, 133. 

Chabot,  Phillipe,  Sieur  de  Brion,  Admiral  of  France,  enters  into  a venture 
with  Verrazzano,  35,  137,  146,  158,  160 ; superseded  by.  the  dauphin, 
afterwards  Henry  II,  42. 


INDEX. 


189 


Charlevoix,  cites  Ramusio  alone  for  the  voyage,  4,  30. 

Chesapeake  bay,  the,  40,  48,  49  ; called  the  bay  of  Santa  Maria,  and  ex- 
plored by  Menendez  Marquez  in  1573,  50 ; entrance  into,  56, 121, 185. 
Claudia,  island  of,  so  first  named  by  Mercator,  107,  110. 

Clement  VII,  pope,  map  of  Ribero  presented  to  him  in  1529, 124. 

Cogswell,  Dr.*  J.  G.,  translation  of  the  Carli  version  of  the  Verrazzano  letter, 
13,  51,  127,  170. 

Colines,  Simon  de,  printer  in  Paris  in  1525,  33. 

Colmenar  de  Arenas,  near  Puerto  del  Pico,  Verrazzano  executed  at,  148, 167* 
Columbus,  Christopher,  31-2,  48,  70. 

Columbus,  Bartholomew,  71. 

Complexion  of  the  Indians  misstated  in  the  Verrazzano  letter,  76. 

Contarini,  Venetian  Ambassador,  letter  in  relation  to  Sebastian  Cabot,  113. 
Coronelli,  on  the  place  of  death  of  Verrazzano,  135. 

Corsair  the  profession  of  Verrazzano,  137. 

Cortereal,  Gaspar,  voyage  of,  32,  59,  60,  95. 

.Cortereaes,  voyage  of  the  brothers,  61. 

Cortes,  treasure  sent  by  him  from  Mexico  to  the  emperor,  captured  by  Ver- 
razzano, 142-3. 

Corunna,  Gomez  sails  on  his  voyage  of  discovery  from,  120. 

Cosmography  of  the  Verrazzano  letter,  7,  16 ; of  Jean  Alfonse,  37. 


I). 

Dauphin,  afterwards  Henry  II,  admiral  of  France,  42 ; arms  of,  42,  44. 
Dauphine,  the  Verrazzano  vessel  of  discovery,  3,  47,  49,  72,  79,  116, 170. 
D’Avezac,  M.,  on  the  early  French  map,  41 ; the  Dieppe  Captain,  85,  125. 
Davila,  Alonzo,  custodian  of  the  treasure  sent  by  Cortes  - captured  by  Ver- 
razzano, 142 ; his  letter  giving  an  account  of  the  capture,  143,  164. 
Delaware  bay,  explored  by  Gomez,  121. 

Denys,  Jean,  voyage  in  1504  from  Honfleur  to  Newfoundland,  86. 

Pesertas,  rocks  near  Madeira,  whence  the  Verrazzano  voyage  of  discovery 
began,  3,  7,  58. 

Diaz,  Bernal,  on  the  capture  of  Verrazzano,  147-8. 

Dieppalaid  down  on  the  Verrazano  map,  93,  95, 135-6. 

Dieppe  in  Normandy,  Verrazzano  a denizen  of,  3,  64,  136, 143-4. 

Dieppe,  discourse  of  the  French  captain  of,  37,  62,  67,  84. 


E. 

Elizabeth  islands,  near  Cape  Cod,  52  ; natives  of,  78-9  ; termination  of  the 
fourth  course  of  the  Verrazzano  voyage,  130. 

Esquimaux,  voyage  of  Cortereal  among  the,  60. 

Estienne  .Henri,  early  printer  in  Paris,  31,  33,  62. 

Ethiopians,  Indians  represented  in  the  Verrazzano  letter  to  have  been  black 
like  them,  76.  • 

Eusebius’  Chronicle  by  Multivallis,  account  of  the  Indians  taken  in  1508 
from  Newfoundland  to  France,  62-3. 


190 


VERRAZZANO. 


Fabre’s  translation  of  Pigafetta’s  journal,  by  order  of  Louise, ,15,  33. 

Florida,  discovered  by  tlie  Spaniards,  93. 

Florin,  Juan,  a French  corsair,  identified  as  Yerrazzano,  136-7 ; captures  a 
ship  from  Hispaniola,  138 ; also  the  treasure  sent  by  Cortes,  143, 
145  ; takes  a Portuguese  ship  coming  from  the  Indies,  145 ; list  of 
his  vessels,  165. 

France,  no  evidence  of  the  Verrazzano  voyage  ever  found  there,  26. 

Francese,  Francisca  or  the  French  land,  88,  103,  105. 

Francis  I , king  of  France,  Yerrazzano  letter  addressed  to,  3, 170  ; his  move- 
ments at  the  time  it  purports  to  bear  date,  21 ; absent  from  his  capital 
or  a prisoner  in  Spain  from  June  1524  until  early  in  1526,  22,  23  ; 
never  recognized  the  Yerrazzano  discovery,  34 ; and  lived  for  23 
years  after  it  is  alleged  to  have  taken  place,  without  asserting  any 
right  under  it ; but  otherwise  attempting  colonization  in  America, 
35,  41. 

Francis,  the  Chicorane,  his  false  stories  about  the  country  to  Ayllon,  124. 

French  captain  of  Dieppe,  discourse  of,  57,  62,  67,  84  ; who  he  was,  85. 

French  cartographer  of  the  reign  of  Francis  excludes  the  Verrazzano  dis- 
covery, 41-4. 

French  fishermen  frequented  Newfoundland  and  Cape  Breton,  before  the 
Verrazzano  voyage,  63. 

French  navigation  to  the  northern  coast  of  America,  100,  106. 

Fundy,  bay  of,  54,  56. 


G. 

Gamos,  Bio  de,  the  Penobscot,  explored  by  Gomez,  121, 133.  • 

Garcia,  Nuno,  Spanish  cartographer,  his  map,  126. 

Gastaldi,  his  map  representing  Norumbega,  38 ; and  Acadia,  40 ; author 
of  the  maps  in  Ramusio,  92. 

Georgetown,  S.  C.,  harbor,  48. 

Giles,  Juan  de,judge  at  Cadiz,  executes  the  death  warrant  upon  Verrazzano > 
148  ; his  letters  to  the  emperor,  167-8. 

Globe  of  Ulpius  containing  the  Yerrazzano  legend,  99,  101,  103,  113. 

Gomez,  Estevan,  Portuguese  pilot,  enters  the  Spanish  service,  117  ; accom- 
panies Magellan  as  chief  pilot  and  deserts  him,  118  ; attends  the 
junta  at  Badajos,  120;  sails  in  1525  on  a voyage  of  discovery  to 
North  America  for  the  emperor,  120 ; explores  the  coast  from  Cape 
Roman  to  Cape  Breton,  120-1  ; his  voyage  described  by  Oviedo  in 
the  following  year,  and  his  exploration  laid  down  in  1527  and  1529 
on  Spanish  charts,  122-3  ; which  were  known  before  the  Verrazzano 
letter  is  shown  to  have  existed,  126  ; and  were  the  basis  of  that  letter, 
126. 

Gosnold’s  voyage  to  Cape  Cod,  78. 


INDEX. 


191 


Grapes  alleged  in  the  Yerrazzano  letter  to  have  been  ripe  in  North  Carolina 
in  April,  5,  80,  81,  82. 

Greene,  George  W.,  his  monograph  on  Yerrazzano,  14;  asserts  the  recom- 
position of  the  Yerrazzano  letter  in  Ramusio,  14,  16. 

Gualdape,  or  St.  Helena,  S.  C.,  river  visited  by  Ay  lion,  where  he  dies,  123. 


H. 

Hakluyt,  reprints  Ribahlt’s  Terra  Florida,  27 ; publishes  map  of  Michael 
Lok,  101 ; his  mention  of  Verrazzano,  109-111,  146 ; translation  of 
the  letter  mentioned,  110,  137,  170. 

Harrisse,  M.,  publishes  the  commission  of  Roberval,  36. 

Hatteras,  Cape,  48  ; C.,de  S.  Juan  on  the  Ribero  map,  130. 

Henry  YIII,  of  England,  sends  an  expedition  to  Newfoundland  in  1527,  63, 
113  ; map  presented  to  him  by  Verrazzano,  109-112. 

Henry,  Dauphin,  42 ; King  Henry  II,  36,  41. 

Henry  III,  of  France,  37. 

Henry  IY,  of  France,  3^. 

Henry,  Cape,  at  the  entrance  of  the  Chesapeake,  49,  56.  • 

Hispaniola,  natives,  70 ; map,  126  ; ship  captured  by  Verrazzano,  138. 
Hochelaga,  grant,  37  ; river,  38. 

Homem,  Diego,  map  acknowledges  that  of  Ribero,  106. 

Hudson  river,  shown  on  the  map  of  Ribero,  43, 121, 130,  132. 

% 

I. 

Indians  of  North  America,  complexion  of,  78, 79,  82. 

Indians  carried  to  Rouen  in  1508-9,  62-3  ; to  Toledo  by  Gomez,  122. 

Indies,  proposed  voyage  by  Verrazzano  to  the,  145-7. 

Iucatanet,  or  Nova  Gallia  on  the  Yerrazzano  map,  95. 

Italy,  discoveries  of  Gomez  immediately  made  known  in,  124. 

Itinerary  of  Charles  Y,  148-9. 


J. 

Jomard,  M.,  repoduces  a French  map  of  the  Yerrazzano  period,  41. 

Jordan,  the  river  Santee,  most  northerly  point  reached  by  the  expeditions 
of  Ayllon,  123-4. 

Joao  III,  king  of  Portugal,  extract  in  regard  to  Yerrazzano,  from  the  chron- 
icle of,  139  ; letter  of  Silveira  to,  162. 


K. 

Kohl,  J.  G.,  geographical  works  and  observations,  88, 101,  102,  105,  123. 
Kunstmann,  von  Spruner  and  Thomas,  their  atlas  published  at  Munich,  62. 


192 


VARRAZZANO. 


L. 

Labrador,  grant  of,  37 ; Jean  Alfonse  there,  39. 

Landfall  of  the  Verrazzano  voyage,  4,  5,  47, 130. 

Laudoniere,  uses  the  version  of  Ramusio,  27-8. 

La  Plata,  voyage  of  Sebastian  Cabot,  120. 

Laurentian  library  in  Florence,  15. 

League,  length  according  to  the  Verrazzano  letter,  47,  129. 

Le  Clerc  mistakes  as  to  the  discovery  of  the  straits  of  Belle  Isle  by  Alfonse, 
39. 

Leri,  Baron  de,  fabulous  visit  to  the  island  of  Sable,  40. 

Lerma,  order  of  execution  of  Verrazzano  made  by  Charles  V at,  148. 
Lescarbot,  plagiarist  as  to  the  voyage  of  Verrazzano,  29. ' 

Livorno,  Leghorn,  on  the  Verrazano  map,  93,  95. 

Long  Island,  52,  55. 

Lok  or  Locke,  Michael,  map  of,  101-2,  109-110. 

Louise  of  Savoy,  mother  of  Francis  I^island  called  after,  6 ; made  regent, 
2? ; causes  Pigafetta’s  journal  of  Magellan’s  voyage  to  be  translated, 
32-3 ; her  death,  10 ; referred  to  in  the  discourse  of  the  French 
captain,  87. 

Luisia,  island  of,  on  the  Verrazzano  map,  94. 


# 

M. 

Madeira,  the  Dauphine  leaves  there  on  her  voyage  of  discovery,  4,  79. 

Madrid,  treaty  of  in  1526, 147. 

Magellan,  15,  18  ; journal  of  his  voyage  presented  to  Louise,  32-3;  straits 
of  first  represented  on  the  Ptolemaic  maps  by  Munster,  104 ; his  ex- 
pedition from  Spain,  118 ; death,  119. 

Magliabechian  library  in  Florence,  Verrazzano  letter  in  the,  15,  170. 

Maine,  bay  of,  54. 

Marcellus  Cervinus,  bishop  of  Florence,  cardinal  and  pope,  globe  constructed 
for  by  Ulpius,  114,  150. 

Mare  de  Verrazzana,  102, 109. 

Mare  Occidentale,  96,  102. 

Margaux,  wild  fowl  on  the  coast  of  Newfoundland,  90. 

Margry,  M.  adopts  the  Carli  version  of  the  letter,  30;  first  publishes  the 
agreement  between  Chabot  and  Verrazzano,  146, 158;  his  interpreta- 
tion of  the  name  of  the  Verrazano  vessel,  170. 

Martha’s  Vineyard,  island  of,  53  ; Indians  of,  79,  130. 

Martyr,  Peter,  decades  of,  translated  into  French  and  printed  in  Paris,  32  ; 
account  of  natives  of  the  West  India  islands,  72  ; describes  the  com- 
pletion of  the  Indians  of  South  Carolina,  78  ; mentions  the  proposed 
expedition  of  Gomez,  120;  his  history  of  the  West  Indies,  125;  big 
mention  of  Juan  Florin,  136, 138,  142, 143, 145. 

Massachusetts  bay,  54-5,  69. 


INDEX. 


193 


Matienzo  and  Ayllon,  expedition  of,  78,  128. 

Menendez,  Pedro,  the  adelantado,  50. 

Menendez  Marquez  Pedro,  explores  the  coast  from  the  point  of  Florida  to 
the  Chesapeake,  50. 

Mercator,  the  first  cartographer  to  refer  to  Verrazzano,  101,  107. 

Micmacs,  natives  of  Cape  Breton,  63. 

Moluccas,  new  route  proposed  by  Gomez,  117. 

Moncada,  Hugo  de,  commander  of  the  Spanish  fleet  in  Barbary,  17,  19,  22. 
Montana  verde,  on  the  map  of  Ribero,  the  highlands  of  Navesink  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Hudson,  130,  132  ; copied  on  the  map  of  Ruscelli,  106. 
Montezuma,  articles  belonging  to,  143. 

Monts,  Seiur  de,  Canada  first  colonized  under  his  grants,  40. 

Muchas  yllas,  C.  de,  or  Cape  Cod,  130-2. 

Munich  atlas,  61-2,  {note),  97. 

Munster,  Sebastian,  map  in  his  works,  102, 103,  105. 


K 

Nantucket,  island  of,  54,  130. 

Narraganset,  bay  of,  not  referred  to  in  the  Verrazzano  letter,  52,  55  ; Indi- 
. ans,  73,  79. 

Narsquapees,  natives  of  Labrador,  63. 

Navarrete,  error  as  to  the  voyage  of  Ayllon,  123. 

Navesink,  the  highlands  of,  recognized,  49,  130. 

Newfoundland,  37-8,  57,  61 ; resorted  by  the  French  and  Portuguees. 
before  the  Verrazzano  voyage,  61-4 ; red  Indians  of,  63,  90. 

New  England,  coast  of,  explored  by  Jean  Alfonse,  38-9 ; part  of  Acadia, 
40,  55  ; early  French  navigation  to,  100. 

New  France,  first  attempt  to  colonize,  36  ; map  of  92. 

Newport,  its  harbor  not  intended  in  the  Verrazzano  letter,  53. 

Normands  and  Bretons,  in  1504  discover  Newfoundland,  62,  86;  resort 
there  to  fish,  63-4. 

Normanda,  name  of  one  of  the  Verrazzano  fleet,  3. 

Normandy,  fishermen  of,  in*  Newfoundland,  63-4;  fleet  preparing  in  the 
ports  of,  139-42  ; Verrazzano  a denizen  of,  170. 

Noroveregue,  cape  of,  Cape  Sable,  38. 

North  Carolina,  landfall  of  the  Verrazzano  voyage,  47;  harbor  of  Beaufort, 
48  ; natives-,  69,  79 ; ripening  of  grapes,  81. 

Norumbega,  land  of,  36 ; described  by  Jean  Alfonse,  37-8  ; map  of,  37-8  ; 
discovered  by  the  Portuguese  and  Spaniards,  39 ; an  Indian  name, 
38,  87. 


0. 

Ochelaga,  country  of,  36 ; river  of,  38. 

Olimpe,  C.  de,  on  the  Verrazzano  map,  93. 

Oviedo,  on  the  custom  of  naming  newly  discovered  places,  46 ; his  account 
of  the  voyage  of  Gomez,  82,  121-2,  125,  136. 

25 


194 


VERRAZZANO. 


P. 

Paesi  novamente  ritrovati,  Italian  book  of  voyages  translated  and  printed 
in  Paris,  32. 

Pamlico  sound,  complexion  of  the  natives,  78. 

Paris,  early  printing,  31-2. 

Parmentier,  Jean,  voyage  to  Sumatra,  85,  147. 

Pasqualigo,  the  Venetian  ambassador,  account  pf  the  voyage  of  Cortereal,  59. 

Pelli,  life  of  Verrazzano,  12,  134. 

Peltry,  early  trade  in,  to  Norumbega,  38. 

Penobscot,  called  the  river  of  Norumbega  and  described  by  Alfonse,  37-8  ; 
explored  first  by  Gomez  and  called  by  him  rio  de  los  Gamos,  121,  133. 

Pensee,  a ship  of  Dieppe,  voyage  to  Newfoundland,  86. 

Pescara,  army  of,  in  Provence  in  1524,  21-2. 

Pigafetta,  journal  of  Magellan’s  voyage,  translated  by  order  of  Louise,  15, 
32-3. 

Portuguese,  discoveries  of  the,  58,  59,  86 ; charts  of,  61,65-7;  fishermen 
in  Newfoundland,  61-3. 

Printing  well  established  in  France  in  the  time  of  Verrazzano,  31-2. 

Pringe,  Capt.  Martin,  his  description  of  the  birch-bark  canoe,  75  ; and  of 
the  complexion  of  the  Indians  of  Martha’s  Vineyard,  79. 

Propaganda,  college  of  the,  Verrazzano  map  in  its  possession,  17. 

Provence,  invasion  of,  by  the  army  of  the  emperor,  22. 

Ptolemy,  edition  of,  by  Bernardus  Sylvanus,  showing  Newfoundland,  in 
1511,  60 ; by  Sebastian  Munster  printed  in  1540  at  Basle,  showing 
Canada,  101-3. 

Puerto  del  Pico,  Verrazzano  executed  at  Colmenar,  near,  148. 

• 

Q. 

Quejo,  Pedro  de,  pilot  of  Matienzo.  testimony  as  to  his  expedition,  123. 

Quinones,  Antonio,  custodian  of  treasure  sent  to  Spain  by  Cortes,  142 ; 
killed  in  the  action  with  Verrazzano,  143. 


R. 

Race,  Cape,  57,  59,  61-2*94, 131. 

Ramusio,  first  publishes  the  Verrazzano  letter,  2,  10  ; recomposes  it  and 
materially  alters  the  text,  4,  55,  82-3,  137 ; for  three  centuries  the 
only  authority  for  the  voyage,  13,  30,  33,  65,  67  ; responsible  for  the 
credit  given  to  the  letter,  83  ; edits  a translation  in  Italian  of  Oviedo’s 
first  work,  125 ; his  account  of  the  death  of  Verrazzano  an  imposition, 
134-5, 149-50. 

Raso,  Cabo,  61,  94, 131. 


INDEX. 


195 


Red  Indians  of  Newfoundland,  why  so  called,  63. 

Regiomontanus,  his  table  of  eclipses,  8. 

Reinel,  Pedro,  map  of,  61,  97. 

Rhode  Island,  complexion  of  the  Indians  of,  78. 

Rhodes,  similar  island  named  after  the  mother  of  Francis,  6,  21,  52. 

Ribault,  derives  his  information  in  regard  to  Yerrazzano,  from  Ramusio, 
26-7. 

Ribera,  Juan,  secretary  of  Cortes,  carries  the  news  to  Spain  of  the  treasure 
at  the  Azores,  142,  144. 

Ribero,  Diego,  Spanish  cartographer,  map  of,  43,  50,  100  ; lays  down  the 
exploration  of  Gomez,  121-3  ; his  map  in  1529  presented  to  the  pope, 
124  ; and  is  the  basis  of  the  Yerrazzano  letter,  126-133. 

Rio  de  Buelta,  on  Cape  Breton,  northerly  limit  of  the  voyage  of  Gomez,  120. 

Rio  de  los  Gamos,  the  Penobscot,  explored  by  Gomez,  121. 

Roberval,  expedition  to  Canada,  34r-6  ; his  commission  first  published  by 
M.  Harrisse,  36  ; his  return  from  Canada  in  1543,  41-2. 

Roche,  Marquis  de  la,  commissions  to  settle  the  newly  discovered  countries, 
36-7  ; his  failure,  39,  40. 

Rochelle,  Yerrazzano  at,  143-4  ; letter  of  Alonzo  Davila  from,  164-5. 

Rosier,  account  of  the  New  England  Indians  using  tobacco,  74. 

Rouen,  Indians  of  Newfoundland,  with  their  birch-bark  canoe,  taken  there 
in  1608,62. 

Ruscelli,  map  of,  refers  to  the  discoveries  of  Gomez,  106. 

Rut,  John,  voyage  to  Newfoundland  in  1527,  63,  113. 


s. 

Sable,  Cape,  Nova  Scotia,  called  Cape  of  Norumbega,  by  Alfonse,  38,  56  ; 

Arecifes  on  Ribero’s  map,  131-2. 

Sable  island,  convicts  abandoned  there  by  de  la  Roche,  40. 

Saggiatore,  a journal  in  Rome,  first  publishes  the  letter  of  Carli,  17. 
Saguenay,  Roberval  in  1543  at,  41. 

San  Antonio,  one  of  Magellan’s  ships,  with  Gomez,  118. 

San  Antonio,  river  on  Ribero’s  map,  106. 

Santa  Cruz,  Alonzo  de,  map  of,  in  the  Munich  atlas,  42. 

Santa  Cruz,  or  Brazil,  threatened  expedition  of  Yerrazzano,  to,  139. 

St.  Domingo,  Indians  taken  to,  from  South  Carolina,  78  ; expeditions  of 
Ayllon  and  Matienzo  from,  123. 

Santa  Elena  or  Helena,  South  Carolina,  Ayllon  dies  and  his  expedition  ends 
there,  123. 

Santiago,  on  the  Ribero  map,  43  ; on  the  Yerrazzano  map,  93. 

St.  Johns,  Newfoundland,  fishing  vessels  there  in  1527,63. 

S.  Juan,  C.  de,  on  the  Ribero  map,  Cape  Hatteras,  130. 

St.  Lawrence,  the  river,  37,  40. 

Santa  Maria,  bay  of,  the  Chesapeake,  visited  by  Menendez  Marquez,  50,  133, 
Santa  Maria,  one  of  the  Azores,  treasure  sent  by  Cortes,  remains  at,  142. 

St.  Roman,  C.  de,  southerly  limit  of  the  Yerrazzano  voyage,  130. 

St.  Yincent,  Cape,  treasure  captured  off,  143. 


196 


VEERAZZANO. 


Santee,  the  river  Jordan,  Indians  taken  from,  78 ; northerly  limit  of  the 
expeditions  of  Ayllon,  123-4. 

Saracens,  complexion  of  the  American  Indians  likened  by  Ramusio  to  the, 
82. 

Sargales,  on  Ribero’s  map,  at  or  near  Cape  Canso,  131. 

Seville,  charts  showing  the  exploration  of  Gomez  prepared  at,  122,  126. 

Silveira,  Portuguese  ambassador  to  France,  139 ; his  letter  to  King  Joao 
III,  141,  162. 

Simancas,  documents  from  the  archives  at,  148,  167,  168. 

Smith,  Buckingham,  his  inquiry  into  the  authenticity  of  the  Verrazzano 
discovery,  3 ; globe  of  Ulpius  found  by  him,  113  ; documents  ob- 
tained by  him  from  the  archives  of  Spain  and  Portugal,  'prefatory 
note  and  Appendix. 

Smith,  Capt.  John,  description  of  the  complexion  of  the  Indians  of  the 
Chesapeake,  78-9. 

South  Carolina  discovered  in  the  expedition  of  Ay  lion  and  Matienzo,  119. 

Spaniards  discover  Norumbega,  39  ; and  Florida,  93.  * 

Strozzi  library  in  Florence,  depository  of  the  Carli  manuscript,  11, 1.5  ; when 
founded,  11. 

Sumatra,  voyage  to,  85. 

Sylvanus,  Bernardus,  map  in  his  edition  of  the  Ptolemy  of  1511,  60. 


T. 

Terra  Nova,  fisheries  carried  on  there  by  the  Portuguese  in  1506,  61  ; 
Indians  taken  thence  to  France  in  1508,  62-3  ; discovered  by  the 
Bretons  and  Normands  and  the  Portuguese,  86-7. 

Thomassey,  M.,  first  to  call  attention  to  the  Yerrazano  map  in  1853,  92  ; 
describes  the  Ribero  map  sent  to  the  pope,  125. 

Thevet,  Andre,  his  account  of  the  Verrazzano  voyage,  30. 

Tiraboschi,  mentions  the  Carli  version  of  the  letter,  13,  15 ; and  the  letter 
of  Caro,  108. 

Tobacco  pipe,  its  use  among  the  Indians  of  the  North  American  continent,  74. 

Toledo,  Indians  taken  there  by  Gomez,  121. 

Traffalgar,  C.  now  Cape  Fear,  on  the  map  of  Ribera,  the  landfall  of  the  Ver- 
razzano voyage  near,  130. 

u. 

Ulpius,  Euphrosynus,  globe  of,  99  ; the  only  evidence  of  the  early  existence 
of  the  Verrazano  map,  101,  113  ; from,  115. 


V. 

Val  di  Greve,  Verrazzano  a town  in  the,  whence  the  family  name,  134. 
Varesam,  Jelian  de,  agreement  with  Chabot,  35,  158.  100. 


INDEX. 


197 


Varezano  Joao,  mentioned  by  the  Portuguese  chronicler,  Andrade,  139  ; 
andby^the  ambassador,  Silveira,  141,  163. 

Verassen,  Jean,  mentioned  in  the  manuscripts  of  Dieppe,  112. 

Verrazano,  Hieronimo  de,  map  of,  84  ; map  described,  91-115. 

Verrazzana,  land  of,  94  ; sea  of,  162. 

Verrazzani,  the  brothers,  113,  115. 

Yerrazzano,  family  of,  13,  116,  134. 

Verrazzano,  Bernardo  da,  two  ancestors  of  the  name,  134. 

Yerrazzano,  Giovanni  da,  the  discovery  attributed  to  him,  1 ; letter  in  his 
name  addressed  to  the  king  of  France,  3 ; letter  not  genuine,  10  ; two 
versions  of  the  letter,  10  ; one  first  printed  by  Ramusio,  in  1556,  10  ; 
the  other  appended  to  a letter  of  Fernando  Carli,  first  printed  in 
1841,  11-13  ; the  latter  the  original  form,  13-16  ; the  letter  not  au- 
thentic, 25  ; no  voyage  made  by  him  for  the  king  of  France  known 
in  the  history  of  France  or  acknowledged  by  her  kings,  25-44  ; the 
letter  intrinsically  false,  45-83  ; stated  by  Hakluyt  to  have  made 
three  voyages  to  America  and  visited  Henry  YIII,  of  England,  109  ; 
his  career,  134-148  ; Ramusio’s  account  of  his  death,  134-5  ; was  a 
corsair  known  by  the  name  of  Juan  Florin,  136  ; his  first  capture, 
138  ; threatens  an  expedition  against  Brazil,  139-141  ; captures  the 
treasure  sent  from  Mexico  by  Cortes,  143 ; takes  a Portuguese  India- 
man  in  the  summer  of  1524, 145 ; his  probable  visit  to  England,  146  ; 
enters  into  a venture  with  Chabot,  146  ; depredates  upon  the  com- 
merce of  Spain  and  is  himself  captured,  147  ; summarily  executed  by 
order  of  Charles  Y,  in  November  1427,  148 ; not  answerable  for  the 
fraud,  151. 

Yerrazzano,  Piero  Andrea  da,  father  of  Giovanni,  134. 

Vespucci,  Amerigo,  7,  52. 

Vespucci,  Juan,  120. 

Victoria,  one  of  Magellan’s  ships  returns  with  the  news  of  his  death,  119. 


w. 

Wampum,  used  for  money  and  personal  ornament  by  the  Indians  of  New 
England,  72-3. 

Waymouth,  Captain,  Rosier’s  account  of  smoking  the  tobacco  pipe  by  the 
Indians  seen  on  his  voyage,  74. 

Williams,  Roger,  on  the  use  of  wampum  by  the  Narraganset  Indians,  73- 
4 ; on  their  complexion,  79. 

Wolsey,  Cardinal,  proposition  to  Sebastian  Cabot,  in  1519,  to  go  in  search 
of  a northwest  passage,  113. 

Wood,  William,  description  of  the  wampum  of  the  Narrangansets,  73. 


X. 


Xaragua,  Bechechio  Cacique  of,  71. 


198 


VERRAZZANO. 


Y. 


Yucatan  and  Yucatanet  on  the  Verrazano  map,  95  note. 


z. 

Z,  the  letter  used  differently  in  the  name  of  the  author  of  the  map, 
and  that  of  the  navigator,  91  map,  94  note , 16  note,  134, 186. 


PRESS  OP  J.  MUNSELL. 
ALBANY,  N.  Y. 


' 


• I 


% 


